CanadaVOTES: CHP candidate Steven Elgersma running in Haldimand—Norfolk

September 19, 2008

On October 14, 2008, Canadians will be heading to the polls for the federal election. Christian Heritage Party candidate Steven Elgersma is standing for election in the riding of Haldimand—Norfolk.

Wikinews contacted Steven Elgersma, to talk about the issues facing Canadians, and what they and their party would do to address them. Wikinews is in the process of contacting every candidate, in every riding across the country, no matter their political stripe. All interviews are conducted over e-mail, and interviews are published unedited, allowing candidates to impart their full message to our readers, uninterrupted.

Interview
Why are you running for political office, why at the federal level, why this party, and why in this riding?
 * I am running as a Candidate for the CHP because it is the only Federal Party that is squarely based on Christian principles, the only Party that believes in the Supremacy of God, the only Party that is fully Pro-life from conception to natural death, the only Party that believes abortion is the killing of a life and should not be funded by the government, the only Party that is fully Pro-Family, the only Party that believes that homosexuality is contrary to God's will and commandments, for it has been clearly demonstrated, that homosexuality has no genetic or hormonal cause, but is an addiction much like alcoholism, and the only Party that would deal decisively with the Human Rights Commissions, who have been successful in fining people who say anything against the practice of homosexuality. The Plaintiff is paid by the government, and the Defender has to pay his own expenses. This is Christian persecution.


 * All other Parties do not figure with the Supremacy of God. They have in effect said to God to keep his nose out of our business and we will decide how to do things. Our Policy Booklet says, "We affirm that the spirit, or moral ethic, behind Canada's laws must be that of the Holy Bible in recognition of the fact hat Canada is founded upon principles that recognize the supremacy of God and the rule of law.’Human Rights' as expressed in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms can only, therefore, be legitimately interpreted in light of, or in conjunction with, the higher Moral Law of God. We therefore believe that Biblical principles must form the foundation for legislation and judicial interpretation thereof."


 * Another policy is quite revealing. It states: We believe that anarchy will result from prolonged enforcement of 'human rights' where these are interpreted to mean the freedom to act in violation of Biblical ethics, or where the term 'discrimination' is used as a pretext for the dilution or dissolution of morally-sound activity or conduct. We affirm that the insistence of so-called "Gay-Rights" by homosexuals and lesbians is a threat to our nation's family life and extends civil rights beyond what is appropriate. We affirm that the society that indiscriminately stresses 'rights' is headed for revolution, while the society that stresses 'responsibilities' is headed for revival.


 * Another policy says, section 7 of the 'Charter of Rights' should be amended to qualify the term "everyone" with the words, "including the pre-born child from the moment of conception" as having the right to life, liberty and security of the person. The criminal code must be amended to recognize the personhood of all human beings, from conception to natural death, ensuring their rights under the Constitution. These are only a few out of a few hundred policies a government has to deal with. But these are all Biblical principles which the CHP defends. If there were no CHP Candidate, we could not vote our convictions, and for the Christian principles we hold dear.


 * In the Spectator of Sep. 16 we could read the often used quote, "Those who do not learn the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them." Parties that rule God out as Supreme Ruler, who will not consider him as King of kings and Lord of lords, who are not based on Christian principles, but instead are based on the 'shifting sands' of public opinion, are repeating the same mistakes of the past. History has proven over and over again that if we live in harmony with God and his commandments, he will shower us with blessings, but the converse is also true.


 * I am running because I want to stand up for the truth, as opposed to do what seems expedient. I am running because the CHP policies are as good as and better than all others, and which would benefit all Canadians the most, based on the Word of God, the promises of God, borne out by well established history.


 * I would like to see a fairer and more democratic way of voting, such as Proportional Representation. That way each vote would count. The 'First Past the Post' system we have now should be scrapped in favor of the Mixed Member Proportional. The Conservatives and Liberals are not in favor of it, because they are more interested in power and majority Parties. I wished that this would change soon.


 * Well, I went on long enough. It is not that I have no opinion or am not interested in the important issues that politicians are to be concerned about, and we will have to address them, but we must be ruled by God and his Biblical principles in order to be the recipients of his blessings. The Bible says, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord."

'''Previous to this campaign, have you been politically involved? How will you apply your previous work/volunteer/life experience to serving your constituents?'''
 * Yes, I ran as a Candidate before, and we will have to face the same issues again, for nothing has changed for the better, but only got worse.

'''As you campaign around your riding, it's likely that some issues are mentioned more often by voters, than other issues. What would you say are the three hottest topics this election, in your riding? What would you and your party do to address these issues?'''
 * 1. The Supremacy of God, which means that the living God is King of kings and Lord of lords, and that our laws must be subordinate to God’s laws.


 * 2. A more democratic voting system, like the Mixed Member Proportional Representation (MMP) like as was proposed in the last Ontario Provincial election. That way every vote would count. What we have presently is the First Past the Post system where only the one with the most votes count.


 * 3. Do away with government sponsored and funded Human Rights Commissions that persecute Christians for standing up to and defending their Christian principles.


 * 4. Abortion laws should be reinstated, as abortion, the deliberate killing of a human life, is murder and infanticide. There are other very important issues, but these should be resolved first.

Are there any misconceptions about you, your leader, or your party and platform?
 * No, he is a wonderful and intelligent person that loves the Lord, and fully supports the Christian principles the Christian Heritage Party was founded on. We would love to see one or more persons elected to Parliament to transform government for the better. The Bible says, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.”

'''There's more ways than ever to get your message out, from the traditional campaign fliers and lawn signs, to new media like websites, Facebook, and YouTube. The tried-and-true routes get the message out to the masses much easier, but digital alternatives are much more measurable in how many are seeing or interacting with your campaign. What seems to be the most effective, from your experience?'''
 * Questionnaires like these, printed in the newspapers, for not everyone goes to All-Candidate meetings.