Nanaimo-Alberni Conservative MP James Lunney will be spending his fifth term in a political landscape he hasn't been part of before – a majority government.
After a Liberal-led effort to bring the Conservatives down on a contempt of Parliament charge to spark the election, voters saw it differently by punishing the Liberals with just 34 seats across the country, while Lunney's Conservatives collected 167. The NDP earend 102 seats.
Lunney himself earned 1,500 more votes over his 2008 results.
"I take [Monday's election] as a measure of affirmation that the public has been watching what's going on in the nation," said Lunney. "We said jobs and the economy was the main focus and I think people saw we have done a good job managing Canada's economy through one of the worst economic crisis in the modern era. The contempt issue did not get any traction with the public."
Lunney said he did not see any indication that there had been a shift in voting locally. After a slow start, the incumbent cruised to earning 30,460 votes, good for 46.5 per cent, while second-place Zeni Maartman of the NDP improved slightly on her 2008 numbers with 24,997 votes. Liberal Renée Miller earned 4,979 votes.
Lunney said Canadians chose wisely in electing a Conservative majority when the global economy is still fragile and the party has a strong mix of veteran leadership and new blood, much of which was elected in B.C. and Ontario.
"We have 19 new candidates in Ontario, many of whom are very accomplished people that that is going to give us a whole new realm of strength on the front bench," he said. "I am very encouraged this Parliament is not only going to be more functional but we're going to be able to keep Canada stable as we go through uncertain times."
Lunney is intent on furthering his commitment to improving health care in Canadian hospitals, a subject he has worked hard on over the past few years to bring to the attention of Ottawa, primarily addressing wellness promotion and disease prevention. He said government needs to address the real needs of health care to measure its effectiveness and cost-effectiveness strategies, because provinces are having a difficult time keeping up with demands.
"We need to figure out how to get better results for less money and that's something I know something about because of my background," he said. "It's a discussion that' been going on behind the scenes but there are tremendous opportunities to advance better health care for a smaller investment with existing technology."
To focus on health care policy and constituents in his geographically large riding, he said he made the decision last year to surrender his position as chairman of the Canada-Israel Interparliamentary Group because many of the activities take place in the eastern part of the country and created a heavy burden on his time.
But when it comes to the possibility of a cabinet position, Lunney downplays the likelihood.
"I haven't set my heart on a cabinet position, we have some very skilled and talented people," said Lunney. ""We'll see what cards come down as we move forward. The dust is still settling. But there may be other opportunities I can take on in another role that may have some influence."