Schreiner visits Stratford for launch of Ontario Green Party constituency association

Ontario Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner was in Stratford Feb. 2 for the local riding’s first constituency association meeting.

CONNOR LUCZKA, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Ontario Green Party leader Mike Schreiner shared some words of wisdom during the party’s first ever Perth-Wellington constituency meeting, shared to him by an unlikely source: Preston Manning, founder of the right-wing Reform Party of Canada.

“When he started the Reform Movement, he would show up at meetings like this and there'd be five people there,” Schreiner shared with the crowd, who numbered more than just five that evening. “Next year, he'd come and there'd be 15, and the year after that, he'd come and there'd be 50, and the year after that, they would be electing MPs to go to Ottawa. That's how you build a grassroots movement. And I think the Green Party of Ontario is about building that grassroots movement and I think – in particular in rural communities – people are hungry, hungry for an MPP that's going to put their community ahead of their heart. And that's exactly what we stand for. That's exactly what we're going to fight for.”

Schreiner fielded questions from attendees that night, went over platform and stances of his party, and thanked everyone for their time, praising them for being open to grassroots movements.

The meeting, held on Feb. 2, saw the election of the party’s local executive, as well as a space for like-minded supporters to mingle and discuss the issues of the day.

Sandra Drygas was acclaimed president, Brian Noble was acclaimed CFO, and Ian Morton, Peter Varty and Grant Drygas were acclaimed as members-at-large, who will guide the party’s strategy in the riding for the foreseeable future.

Morton, who is also the current Green Party candidate, said that the establishment of the office was a long time coming. Originally, there was work being done to establish the association until rumours swirled about a potential election and local Greens pivoted to getting Morton ready for a February election.

With the constituency association, Morton hopes they will have better coordination for volunteers and door knocking, when the next election comes around, and that they build support over time.

“This is just that next step of being able to get out, reach the members in our riding, and be able to hear what their concerns and issues are,” Morton told reporters that night. “And try and make connections with them and hear what their problems are in their life. So yes, this is the next step of many, to be able to continue to campaign and continue to push the Green Party forward.”

During the last election on Feb. 28, 2025, Morton received 3,299 votes, about 7.5 per cent of the vote and fourth place in the local race.

When asked about the likelihood of Perth-Wellington, a traditionally conservative riding, moving towards the Greens, Morton was optimistic.

“I’m a realist,” Morton said. “I understand where we are, but in order to be able to build that vote, we're going to need multiple election cycles to just continue to mobilize, continue to get the message out, and continue to meet voters in our riding and be able to show them that there is an alternative. So while we're looking for big gains, obviously, as much as we can get in the next election, we're going to be realistic. And if we don't win the riding, which at this point, that's a big task, obviously, we're just going to keep doing the work and keep meeting people and keep giving them this alternative that we feel is better.”