Meet the Candidates: Gravelle seeks seventh term as MPP

THUNDER BAY – Michael Gravelle really doesn’t need much of an introduction.

First elected for the Liberals in 1995 in Thunder Bay-Superior North, the 69-year-old has spent the past 23 years in the political spotlight, first as an opposition MP, then a loyal back bencher and finally, for the past 11 years under premiers Dalton McGuinty and Kathleen Wynne, as a valued cabinet minister.

On June 7 he’ll be asking voters to return him to Queen’s Park for a seventh term and says there’s still plenty he’d like to get done before he walks off the provincial stage.

“I feel very committed to my constituents. I’ve been the MPP for the past 23 years and certainly I relate well to everyone in the riding,” he said.

“I recognize that Thunder Bay-Superior North is a huge riding with many different and unique needs – as Northern Ontario has many unique needs. That’s why I’m very supportive of our Northern platform, which speaks to those needs.”

Looking back on his accomplishments, Gravelle said the work being done to twin the highway between Thunder Bay and Nipigon is something he’s quite proud of, adding the Liberals aren’t done yet.

“Now we’re going to be able to four-lane that all across the North. It’s a huge priority for us,” Gravelle said.

Securing jobs and improving the economy is also high on a list that also includes the continued revitalization of the forest industry and helping to guide the booming mining sector.  

“We’ve got mines opening all across the North. We’ve got a modernized Mining Act that has made it stronger and more efficient and made Ontario an attractive place to invest,” he said.

“We want to continue to move things forward so we can help the mining sector, which is a huge employer in the North, and I want to move forward with the Ring of Fire. These are things that are still not yet done.”

He also wants to see through an all-seasons road into several Matawa First Nation communities, an extension of the Ring of Fire effort.

Twenty-three years in, and Gravelle, who has fought both cancer and depression in recent years, said it’s the love of the work that keeps him going.

“And it’s the love of the people who helped me get through this,” he said. “There is no question each and every community is special.”