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Afraj Gill is a 24-year-old Indian immigrant and technology entrepreneur who is running to be the Liberal candidate in the upcoming federal by-election in Markham-Thornhill, northeast of Toronto.

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Rarely in all my years covering politics have I talked to someone better-equipped for modern public life – young, smart and tech savvy, with an innate understanding of what is hurtling towards us, not to mention ideas on how government should respond: robot taxation, education tax credits for those in automation-prone industries and so on.

On the doorsteps, Gill has talked about the challenges and opportunities of automation to the people in his riding.

“There is an awareness gap and it must be bridged,” he said in an interview.

He remembers talking to a 45-year-old truck driver about self-driving trucks that are already able to navigate themselves across the continent. The technology is there to replace the father of two, even if the regulations aren’t yet in place.

“He was blown away and asked what he should do for himself and his daughters … His entire family offered to come out and knock on doors with us,” he said.

Unfortunately, it is unlikely he will emerge as the victorious candidate because he is not the chosen one. As noted earlier this week, other candidates allege the party has a preferred candidate in mind for Markham-Thornhill: Justin Trudeau’s director of appointments, Mary Ng. She is, by all accounts, able, bright and well-qualified — but that’s not the point.