Canada is heading to the polls on April 28 after a snap spring election was called by Prime Minister Mark Carney at the end of March. With campaigning already underway and election signs popping up on roadsides and our neighbours’ lawns, we reached out to the local candidates who will be appearing on the ballot in Provencher.

The name Ted Falk is nothing new to local voters. Falk has represented Provencher for the past 12 years. The full-time politician lives in Steinbach with his wife Irene, and at almost 65 years of age he says he’s not ready to retire from politics just yet.

“I’m blessed to still be in good shape and feel energized by the opportunity to serve the people of Provencher and Canada,” Falk says. “Our country is in rough shape after a decade of disastrous Liberal rule and I’m eager to be part of fixing what they have broken.”

Falk says that his decision to run again was motivated by his belief that a change in government is not only good but imperative.

“If you thought Trudeau was bad, buckle up. Because Mark Carney would be so much worse.”

Falk says that Canada just can’t afford another four years under Liberal leadership. Thankfully, he adds, there’s hope for the country under the Conservatives.

According to Falk, Canadians are facing four primary threats right now: the cost of living, the economy, rising crime rates, and the protection of freedom.

“We have a common-sense plan to axe the tax, build the homes, fix the budget, and stop the crime,” says Falk. “And after a decade of globalist leadership, we’ll finally put Canada first.”

Falk points to the Conservative plan to cut income tax by 15 percent for the average Canadian.

As well, he says a Conservative government won’t reintroduce the carbon tax, and they’ll eliminate the GST on new home purchases. His party will lower business taxes, cut red tape, and end “corporate welfare” to create a fairer playing field for startups.

Further, the Conservatives plan to repeal a range of Liberal energy laws, build pipelines, and find a market beyond America for Canada’s energy resources.

To address crime, Falk says they’ll look at longer jail terms for repeat offenders, increase border security, and bring back gun laws that target criminals, not law-abiding Canadians.

“We will [also] shrink the size and scope of government,” he says. “Our goal is to make Canada the freest country on earth, a democracy where government is the servant and the people are the masters.”

Closer to home, Falk says he sees constituents who are struggling to get by on their paycheques. American tariffs are only compounding their fears.

He’s also disturbed by government interference in the lives of his constituents.

“Trudeau has grown the size of government by nearly 50 percent. Government has gotten so big and so invasive, people are weary of it. They want freedom. They want to be free to worship, to hold the beliefs they do, and to not be told what to think, feel, and believe.”

While Falk says that he appreciates the overwhelming support the Conservatives have enjoyed in Provencher over the past decades, he doesn’t ever take an election win for granted.

“We still work hard to win every vote,” Falk insists. “What’s especially nice this time around is all the new support. For two years, I’ve been getting calls and emails from folks who are lifetime Liberal and NDP voters saying, ‘Enough is enough. You and Pierre [Poilievre] are the only ones making sense. I’m voting for you.’”

Falk says that it’s just not true to suggest, as some have, that the Conservative ethos aligns with that of the Trump administration south of the border.

“There’s no doubt President Trump invokes very strong feelings. However, to equate Pierre Poilievre and Canada’s Conservatives with Donald Trump and use that as a pretext to justify voting Liberal is, frankly, absurd. To those people I’d say, ‘You may not like Trump, but by voting for the Liberals you would be giving Trump exactly what he wants: a weak, woke government he can walk all over.’”

During Falk’s years in office, he’s maintained his positions on abortion and gender diversity. That won’t change, he says, if he’s re-elected.

“I am pro-life, full stop. I believe there are two genders: male and female, full stop.”

Even so, he supports the freedom of every adult to their own choice of lifestyle while also supporting the freedom of others to agree or disagree with them, within reason.

Falk is proud of his track record at the federal level. He points out that two of his private members bills have been brought before Parliament. The Fairness in Charitable Gifts Act would have levelled the playing field between charitable donations and political donations. More recently, he introduced a bill intended to prevent the elimination of physical currency and the development of a central bank digital currency by the Bank of Canada.

“I’ve had the opportunity to bring forward many local issues to Parliament and affect change,” Falk says. “One big one was getting the drug Trikafta approved by Health Canada to help Canadians suffering from cystic fibrosis. I was also proud to have been one of the few public officials to stand up for Canadians and call out government overreach and corruption during COVID.”

More than anything, he says that he’s proud of the work that gets done through his constituency office on behalf of Provencher residents every day of the year.

“It’s been my honour to serve the people of Provencher the past 12 years. I am so grateful for all of the support and encouragement I receive from folks. I look forward to continuing to serve as their MP if re-elected.”