Simcoe-Grey has an NDP candidate, but beyond her name, very little detail has been provided about her.
Benten Tinkler is on the Simcoe-Grey ballot in the upcoming provincial election on Feb. 27 along with Brian Saunderson for the PCs, Allan Kuhn for the Green Party and Ted Crysler for the Liberals.
Requests for an interview, photo, and biographical details have gone unanswered by Tinkler, who was declared by the party as the local candidate on Feb. 7.
The Ontario NDP's media relations officer, Jack O'Donnell, did respond to email requests for an interview. He rejected the request – in person or by phone during the day, evening, or on the weekend – on Tinkler's behalf.
“I had an opportunity to speak with Benten today and unfortunately she will not be available to connect as she is working full-time,” said O’Donnell in an email.
On Feb. 14, O’Donnell provided the following biography for Tinkler.
“Benten Tinkler is a graduate of the University of Toronto who works in non-profit fundraising. She cares deeply about advocating for accessibility and ensuring that disabled children and adults have reliable, affordable access to programs that improve their lives,” reads the biography.
“Benten wants to fight for affordable housing, proper rent control, and transparency in grocery prices. Having experienced the years-long wait times for necessary surgery herself, she knows how important it is to fast-track healthcare solutions so we have more family health teams, shorter wait times for specialists, and flexible care options,” it finishes.
O'Donnell said he would try to track down a photo, but has not provided one.
He asked for email questions so he could coordinate a response with Tinkler, but CollingwoodToday did not agree to email questions.
“We’re grateful for the opportunity to connect Benten with your readers, but unfortunately it looks like we won’t be able to set this up,” said O’Donnell on Feb. 14.
A Benten Tinkler is listed as the current disability rights representative for the Ontario NDP University-Rosedale riding in Toronto. The incumbent candidate in the University-Rosedale riding is the NDP’s Jessica Bell.
There appears to be a website reserved for Tinkler as a candidate, but the URL leads to an error message.
The Simcoe-Grey NDP electoral district riding association did not respond to a request for information, and the website still lists the candidate and provincial leader from the last election.
For profiles of Simcoe-Grey candidates, visit CollingwoodToday.ca.