'We don't need press announcements': P.E.I. Greens taking unusual approach to campaign

Election platforms are inevitably chock full of promises.But at the unveiling of the Green Party's platform earlier this week, leader Peter Bevan-Baker kicked off the event with a surprising one.

"I promise I will not drag you out to yet another announcement on any other day of this election," he said to the media and party supporterscrammed into acampaign office in Crapaud.

Bevan-Baker went on to explain that unlike the three other parties, which have already held multiple news conferences to announce specific policies and say they will hold more throughout the campaignthe Greens say they won't hold any, beyond that first one.They'll instead focus on door-knocking.

"We don't need press announcements to tell people how incredible this [platform]is," said the Greens'other incumbent, Hannah Bell."We're going to have it in those hundreds and thousands of conversations at the doorsbetween now and E-day."

It's a campaign strategy that has Holland College journalism instructor Rick MacLean scratching his head.

He saidwhile the news conference boycottis certainly "on brand" for a party "trying to portray a different way of doing things," he suspects itmay come at a price for the Greens.

'The Greens are making their life harder'

"This is a very short election.They are desperately trying to get noticed, and the easiest way to get noticed is to use the mainstream media, the main outlets, and make their life as easy as possible," said MacLean.

"Not holding news conferences means they have to run around and chase [the media]a bit. The Greens aremaking their [own]life harder when they want to get theirmessage out as often as they can."

The other parties are offering no apologies for holdingnews conferences.Liberal incumbent Heath MacDonaldsaidknocking on doors only gets you so far.

"We have to remember that we have a working class society in P.E.I., and we're not going to get 100 per centof the people home every day.So it's important we get that message out through the media," said MacDonald.

'You can't leave one group out'

Like the Greens, the Liberals have already unveiled their full election platform.MacDonaldacknowledgedthat now,they'll just use news conferences to highlight some of the policies that are part of that platform.

NDPLeader Joe Byrne saidhis party willtake the same approach.

"When we releaseour platform,the whole platform, we're still going to have announcements on health care and education, because those are the issues people are talking to us about," he said."We don'twant tohave the housing crisis buried in a whole campaign announcement."

The Greens insist Islanders will still have lots of opportunities to hear more details about their specificpolicies and priorities.

A spokesperson for the party said they do plan to issue some news releases, and that they'll be veryactive on social media as well.

PC Leader Dennis King saidwhile all the parties' campaign strategies may differ, they're all just tryingto reach as many voters as possible.

"Our connection with people is changing from the traditional," said King."But of course, Compass is still the most watched suppertime news show, probably per capita in Canada.People still read The Guardian every day.It is a delicate balance, but that's the challenge."

MacLeanagreed,saying voters get their information indifferent ways now.

"There are people that literally don't follow radio and TV anymore.They're getting their information from their cell phone.... There are other people asking their kids how this Facebook and Snapchat thing actually works," said MacLean.

"They're still depending on radio, TV, and the newspapers, and you can't leave one group out."

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