These days, Stef Paquette — the NDP candidate for Nickel Belt — says he’s drunk. With hope, that is.

Paquette kicked off his campaign Saturday to unseat Liberal incumbent Marc Serre with a speech that, at times, was comic, but deadly serious at others.

“Hi, I’m Stef Paquette,” the teacher, actor and musician told the crowd gathered at his campaign headquarters in Val Caron. “I am a guy from Chelmsford, born and raised, who now lives in Hanmer according to Canada Post, Val Thérèse according to Toppers Pizza and Greater Sudbury according to Google maps.”

He said as the son of a teacher and a miner, he was almost raised on a picket line and in politics.

“I still remember walking the line with my mom and her fellow teachers, with a massive ghetto blaster around my neck, with a backpack full of D sized batteries, and Twisted Sister’s – We’re not gonna take it, blaring out the speakers. Good times.”

Quoting Albert Einstein, he said he could no longer stand by as society is destroyed. “Well, I’m done watching. I’m also done with the hypocrisy, the lies, the empty promises, the scandals and the lack of accountability.

“It’s 2019, and we are faced with an opioid crisis, a housing crisis, a student debt crisis, a climate crisis and for every dollar corporations pay in income taxes, workers pay $3.50. The playing field is far from level.

“But despite it all, I stand before you drunk, with hope. (I guess I shouldn’t have put a comma after drunk.)”

Paquette said he’s encouraged by the people he’s met since becoming the NDP candidate. “People like Sara Kitlar-Poitras from Coniston who can’t afford to pay for her autistic son’s treatments and instead of giving up, she instead becomes the brainchild of these autistic-friendly fun nights that she hosts for free for families living with autism. People come down from Estaire and Verner just to participate in this activity.”

Paquette said he’s also encouraged by people like Jessica Lynn Montgomery, Steelworkers Local 2020 Unit 79 president.

“She and her fellow employees have been locked out by CarePartners for the past 16 weeks now. Sixteen goddamn weeks. And yet they trek on. One day longer; one day stronger.”

Paquette said it makes no sense for Ontario to spend $1,500 a day on a hospital bed for a patient who is there because they couldn’t afford their medication and got sick.

He lamented the high debts university and college students are racking up. “They shouldn’t have to feel like owning a house, or getting married or having kids is an unattainable goal just because they decided to better themselves with education.”

He said past and current NDP politicians have served Nickel Belt and Northern Ontario well, and he would do the same if elected.

“On Oct. 21, you have two choices: evolve or repeat. You can’t expect to see a change if you don’t make one … let’s pumpkin spice the crap out of Nickel Belt and paint this great riding of ours orange once again.”

sud.editorial@sunmedia.ca