Martin taps provincial veteran for N.B. riding
Last Updated: Wednesday, November 30, 2005 | 9:59 AM ET
CBC News
Mersereau will challenge the NDP's popular Yvon Godin, who is seeking a fourth consecutive term in Acadie-Bathurst.
A call Sunday from the prime minister coaxed Mersereau out of retirement and onto the federal stage.
"He certainly made a point of calling, and I assume he thinks my experience is an asset. Obviously he must feel that I'm able to do the job."
Mersereau was first elected to the New Brunswick legislature in 1991 in the riding of Bathurst and was immediately appointed to cabinet.
She spent 12 years in several cabinet posts, serving under premiers Frank McKenna, Ray Frenette and Camille Theriault. She also served as an opposition critic for four years before leaving politics in 2003.
Mersereau says she misses political life and her heart belongs in the game.
"I guess the little flame was still there and I could see some of the things that the Martin government was doing lately that really I thought, we should make sure we keep that," she said.
Mersereau admits Acadie-Bathurst is a seat the Liberals both want and need.
Godin offers stiff competition. A former labour leader, he was elected in 1997, defeating powerful Liberal cabinet minister Doug Young by promising to fight changes to Employment Insurance rules.
He has won easily in three federal elections since, doubling the votes garnered by the Liberal challenger in 2004.
Mersereau says the region's high unemployment and depressed economy make the seat vulnerable. She says new blood is needed to turn things around.
She won't be the only one gunning for the seat, though. Conservative candidate Serge Savoie will also be looking to topple Godin and secure the riding for the Tories.
