Drew Garby, a fifth-year political science and economics student at Carleton University, is running to be a Liberal candidate in the 2023 federal election.
As Garby finishes his final semester at Carleton this summer, he said he hopes the next chapter of his life will be representing the Liberal Party of Canada in the Carleton riding just south of Ottawa.
Garby’s campaign team is currently in the process of getting approval by a committee of Liberal party members. Once approved, he will have to be voted in as the candidate of the party at a nomination meeting before he can run to be a Member of Parliament (MP). Garby said he hopes to be voted in this summer.
During his time at Carleton, Garby said he has been active in the Carleton Model UN and chess club. Through his participation in Model UN, Garby said he travelled to Boston, MA and presented to a large crowd at Harvard University.
“Model UN gave me good experience in public speaking,” Garby said. “It was definitely my ability to speak publicly and relate with [people] that drove me to [run] now.”
Garby said his age is an advantage while entering federal-level politics.
“I think my youth provides energy,” Garby said “It proves that I’m not in [politics] for a job, I’m in it to make real, sustainable change because it is [for] my future.”
The Carleton riding is no stranger to young politicians. Kevin Hua, another Carleton student, represented the NDP in the riding during the last federal election. Hua was only 18 at the time and in his first year at Carleton, studying public affairs and policy management. Meanwhile, according to Elections Canada, Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre, who still represents the Carleton riding, first won in 2004 when he was 25 years old.
Although Poilievre has won the past four elections in the riding, the 2019 election marked the first time he won by a less than 50 per cent majority. 338Canada projects the riding as right-leaning, but Garby said he hopes the education behind his economic policy can bridge that gap.
“Fiscal conservatives have merit too,” Garby said. “Especially in the COVID-19 pandemic when we look to recover [economically].”
Garby said he is willing to consult and work with members of other parties to ensure he makes important changes in his community. He said he will support implementation of a 9-8-8 mental health hotline, an LRT line, providing green public transit to residents in Stittsville, Ont. and reducing taxes on overtime pay.
“Whether you [support] the Liberal party, or the Conservative or the NDP, there are merits to everybody,” Garby said. “I will always take a phone call from anybody regardless of political stripe, because I think every single person has something to offer, and there’s always an opportunity to learn.”
Featured Image by Isaac Phan Nay.
