MOOSE JAW — Chey Craik, the People’s Party of Canada (PPC) candidate for Moose Jaw-Lake Centre-Lanigan, met at Dooly’s Billiards & Lounge with family, friends, and supporters on May 31 to provide an open forum for voters to learn about the party amidst clacking pool balls and the rhythmic sound of conversation.
The event helped raise funds for the expected October 2025 federal election and allowed voters a platform to ask questions and bring up concerns.
“Do you feel that we’ve been represented properly in Moose Jaw-Lake Centre-Lanigan? If the answer is no, do you think we need something different? And if the answer is yes, then we are something different,” Craik announced.
“If you align with even the majority of our policies, why wouldn’t we have earned your vote?” he then asked.
The PPC was founded in 2018 when Maxime Bernier – a former Conservative Party candidate – decided to leave, stating that the Conservatives were “too intellectually and morally corrupt to be reformed,” Craik explained.
“I agree with him, and I felt that I had no home left in Canadian politics.”
Craik was now “fully on board” and joined the electoral district association in Moose Jaw. In 2019 Craik won the nomination and ran for the PPC in both the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.
On the national forum, he received three per cent of the vote in 2019 and 11.4 per cent in 2021 marking an upward trend in support. He credits this growth to people’s belief in common-sense policies.
Still, the PPC remains relatively unknown and Craik attributes this to the lack of mainstream media attention.
“Honestly, the PPC has got not attention from the media, other than (through) independent media sources,” he explained. “Part of the reason, I think, is our push to defund the CBC.”
Every year, $1.2 billion of taxpayer dollars is given to the CBC and Radio Canada. Craik said this is inherently unfair and believes these businesses “should be like every other business in Canada, (where) you either win or lose based on your decisions.”
The PPC is founded on four principles: personal responsibility, individual freedom, fairness, and respect. Everything the party stands for is posted online and has been transparent since 2019.
The PPC believes “the people of Canada should make choices for the people of Canada,” and Craik said the party doesn’t believe in “unelected foreign bureaucracies” like the UN making “decisions of any kind for Canadians.”
A couple prominent issues include getting the economy back on track and cooling the housing market, Craik noted. “Fiscal responsibility is something that’s completely lacking in Canadian politics right now.” To start, Craik said he’s stop giving money to foreign bureaucracies and “unelected non-government organizations.”
“We need to keep Canadian money in Canada. We need to support the Indigenous people in Canada, we need to support our veterans, we need to support the homeless… instead of giving away billions of dollars to (other countries and organizations).”
One trend in Canadian politics over the past 150 years, Craik explained, has been the back-and-forth transfer from the Conservative Party to the Liberal Party and routinely voting to remove a candidate from office. Although he understands why many citizens want to vote Trudeau out, the way forward is to vote for who you believe in.
“Vote for the person who wants to represent you,” he said. “If the Conservatives deserve your vote, then vote for them. If the Liberals deserve your vote, vote for them. But if I deserve your vote as a PPC candidate, I think I should get your vote (similarly).
“I will be the voice for this riding (if elected),” Craik said. “I believe that I can represent all of us fairly in Ottawa. I believe that I’ll be loud and boisterous, and I’ll be the guy that gets the attention (we deserve).”
For more information, visit ThePeoplesPartyOfCanada.ca or CheyCraik.ca. Here you can find educational links and learn about volunteer opportunities, membership, and the party’s platform.
Look for PPC representatives at the upcoming Mortlach Saskatoon Berry Festival on Saturday, June 15, Sidewalk Days from July 4 - 6, and the Lumsden Duck Derby on Monday, Sept. 2.
