Andrew Basham

Andrew Basham
Leader of the Green Party of Manitoba
In office
2006–2008
Preceded by Holly Nelson
Succeeded by James Beddome
Personal details
Born 18 August 1983 (1983-08-18) (age 33)
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Political party Green Party of Manitoba

Andrew Basham (born 18 August 1983 in Winnipeg) is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was the leader of the Green Party of Manitoba from 2006 to 2008, and ran against premier Gary Doer in the 2007 provincial election. He has also campaigned for the Canadian House of Commons as a candidate of the Green Party of Canada.

First campaign and university career

Basham ran for the Green Party in the 2004 federal election, and finished fourth in the riding of Charleswood—St. James. He enrolled as an Environmental Studies student at the University of Winnipeg following the election, and became a coordinator for the group SUNSET (Sustainable University Now, Sustainable Earth Tomorrow). In the latter position, he sought resources to conduct a campus-wide survey on criteria such as land, energy, air and health, but the University refused to provide the funding, and instead offered to develop a "Sustainability Task Force".[1] He served on the university's Sustainability Taskforce for the 2005–06 year.[2]

Green Party leader

Basham was a member of the Green Party of Manitoba executive prior to his election as party leader, and wrote an essay in support of proportional representation for the party's August 2006 newsletter.[3] He was chosen as GPM leader in November 2006, defeating rival candidate David Carey. He has identified Lake Winnipeg, urban sprawl and climate change as his party's key priorities. His mother, Ardythe Basham, was party president prior to the 2006 convention.[4]

Basham led his party into the 2007 provincial election. He called for a provincial ban on cosmetic pesticides, and the introduction of a four-day work week. He also promised 1,500 subsidized housing units, and tax incentives for companies that sell organic foods.[5] The Greens fielded fifteen candidates, none of whom were elected. Basham himself ran against New Democratic Party leader and Premier of Manitoba Gary Doer, and finished fourth.

He sought re-election to the party leadership in 2008, and was defeated by James Beddome.

Electoral record

Manitoba general election, 2007: Concordia
Party Candidate Votes%∆%Expenditures
New DemocraticGary Doer 3,862 69.05 −7.62 $14,144.95
     Progressive Conservative Ken Waddell 1,209 21.62 +5.51 $15,745.09
LiberalLeslie Worthington 336 6.01 −1.21 $340.30
GreenAndrew Basham 186 3.33 – $199.88
Total valid votes 5,593 100.00
Rejected and declined votes 28
Turnout 5,621 47.42 +0.92
Electors on the lists 11,853
Canadian federal election, 2004: Charleswood—St. James
Party Candidate Votes%Expenditures
ConservativeSteven Fletcher 18,688 44.29 $70,305.19
LiberalGlen Murray 17,954 42.55 $71,990.15
New DemocraticPeter Carney 4,283 10.15 $6,030.25
GreenAndrew Basham 880 2.09 $1,061.82
MarijuanaDan Zupansky 337 0.80 $0.00
CommunistBeatriz Alas 49 0.12 $654.58
Total valid votes 42,191 100.00
Total rejected ballots 109
Turnout 42,300 65.45
Electors on the lists 64,627
Percentage change figures are factored for redistribution. Conservative Party percentages are contrasted with the combined Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative percentages from 2000.
Sources: Official Results, Elections Canada and Financial Returns, Elections Canada.

All electoral information is taken from Elections Canada.

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Michael Marshall, "U of W goes greener as it looks to the future", Winnipeg Free Press, 1 December 2004, N4.
  2. ↑ Andrew Basham, "The SunSet project", Alma Mater Society of UBC, Retrieved 21 November 2006.
  3. ↑ Andrew Basham, "Manitoba's Electoral System: An Overview with Options for Change", Greenprint, August 2006, p. 4.
  4. ↑ Kevin Rollason, "U of W student to lead Green Party", Winnipeg Free Press, 20 November 2006, B3.
  5. ↑ David Kuxhaus, "Greens promise ban on cosmetic pesticides", Winnipeg Free Press, 10 May 2007, A6.
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