Our efforts did not go unnoticed. Margaret Dempsey, vice-president of the Federation of Women Teachers' Associations of Ontario commented in the Nov 7, 1991 edition of the London Free Press that she's seen neither "the numbers nor the intensity" of taxpayer-coalition style trustee candidates in other Ontario centres.
On October 28, coalition forces held a public meeting featuring guest speaker Sheila Morrison, author of Unbungling the Basics, and an outspoken critic of Ontario's government-run school system. Over 200 people attended the event (at least four times the number of people at any given all-candidates' debate) but media coverage was minimal. This made the job of informing voters about issues like whole language, mainstreaming, and the Ministry of Education's education philosophy in the brief period of time given almost impossible.
Though none of the coalition-endorsed candidates were elected, their performance during the election and the effect their presence had on the issues aired was dramatic. Time was the main factor working against candidates, since many entered the election race too late to build the name recognition and profile necessary to unseat incumbents. 1994's municipal election, on the other hand, promises to be most interesting.
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last updated on April 28, 2002
