Josie Baker puts in bid to be P.E.I.'s next senator
Laura Chapin | CBC News | Posted: August 8, 2016 7:10 PM | Last Updated: August 8, 2016
An Island woman says what she initially saw as a tongue-in-cheek post on Facebook led to her eventually apply for P.E.I.'s vacant senate seat.
Josie Baker, 36, said she hadn't given the idea any thought until a friend posted encouraging her, saying she'd support her if Baker went for the job.
"I took it as a joke to start off with. I thought it was pretty funny," said Baker.
"But there was just a lot of people that were saying 'No, you really should go for it.'"
Women encouraged to apply
She said a post from the P.E.I. Coalition for Women in Government encouraging women to apply was the final nudge she needed.
"[Women]....we won't necessarily put ourselves out there. We won't toot our own horns," said Baker.
"And I think that that's one of the barriers to women being involved in various political positions, is that it does sort of require that level of self-promotion."
Good chance based on criteria says Baker
Baker thinks her chances are fairly good given some of the merit-based criteria the Trudeau government is looking for.
"I'm a little bit younger than quite a number of senators. I'm also non-partisan and I'm a woman. I'm also part of the LGBTQ community," said Baker.
"I do a lot of work on a really grassroots community level and I think I would bring a really different perspective that would add a lot."
For the last five years, Baker has been working on a project with the Cooper Institute researching the use of temporary foreign workers on P.E.I. and lobbying to improve their living conditions.
Baker is also fluent in French, a skill she said she solidified while working as a participant and staff person with Katimavik.
Baker says that program, started by the late Senator Jacques Hebert, was another factor that influenced her to apply, because it shows the positive influence senators can have through their work.
Term should be longer than MPs
"I do see that at the age of 36, a term limit up to the age of 75 would be quite long but I think that if it was best for the nation that I resign before then I would have no problem doing that."
Although Baker does think a senator's term should be longer than a Member of Parliament's term.
"One of the advantages I think of having a longer term on the Senate is that it allows for a longer term view. It goes beyond four year, sort of electoral cycles," said Baker.
Not a property owner
Baker said, if she was chosen to fill the vacant seat, she would have to buy $4,000 worth of property on P.E.I. to meet the constitutional requirements of the job. She believes this rule excludes a lot of people and hopes it's changed during future senate reform.
CBC News asked for the number of applications received for P.E.I.'s senate position, but Ottawa said that information will not be released until after the appointments are announced.
At least two other Islanders have applied for the vacant seat. A five-member advisory board with two Island members will create a short list of candidates in the next couple of months, and a decision is expected no later than the end of the year.
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