Son of late MP Jim Carr to seek Liberal party nomination to run in Winnipeg riding
The son of Jim Carr, the Liberal member of Parliament who died last year, is seeking the party's nomination to run for his father's seat in an upcoming byelection.
Ben Carr announced his candidacy for the Liberal Party of Canada's nomination to run in the Winnipeg South Centre riding.
The elder Carr died in December at the age of 71 after a battle with cancer and kidney failure.
The former minister for natural resources and, later, international trade diversification, was first elected as a member of Parliament in 2015 and re-elected in 2019.
The younger Carr is the vice-president of a consulting firm called Indigenous Strategy Alliance, and used to be a teacher, coach and principal at a Winnipeg high school, as well as a senior federal Liberal government staffer.
He says choosing to run after his father's death was a difficult decision, but he decided to submit his name after speaking with friends and family.
"When my dad passed away in December, he left not only a huge hole in my life, but a huge hole in our community as well," Ben Carr said in a statement Thursday.
"I have always believed in public service. It's been at the core of everything I have done."
Carr said his values align with the Liberal party and, if selected, he hopes to continue advocating for issues important to him, including the fight against climate change, reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, and supporting families and seniors.
"My commitment to the people of Winnipeg South Centre is that I will continue serving this community as an honest and hardworking bridge-builder who brings people together to accomplish collaborative change."
Carr has received support from several local and national leaders, including former federal cabinet ministers Maryam Monsef and Scott Brison, former prime minister Paul Martin and Manitoba Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has six months from when the seat was vacated to hold a byelection.
Winnipeg city councillor Sherri Rollins has also expressed interest in obtaining the Liberal party nomination.
There are four vacant seats in the House of Commons: Calgary Heritage in Alberta, Oxford in Ontario, Winnipeg South Centre and Portage-Lisgar in Manitoba.
Former interim Conservative leader Candice Bergen recently announced she will soon resign from the Portage-Lisgar seat.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 2, 2023.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING | U.S. President Joe Biden touches down in Ottawa
U.S. President Joe Biden arrived Thursday evening in Ottawa for a whirlwind 27-hour visit expected to focus on both the friendly and thorny aspects of the Canada-U.S. relationship, including protectionism and migration on both sides of the border.

Trudeau, Biden could agree to end 'loophole' in Safe Third Country Agreement: CP source
Canada and the United States are negotiating a deal that could see asylum seekers turned back at irregular border crossings across the border, including Roxham Road in Quebec.
Opposition parties affirm call for interference inquiry, amid questions over MP Han Dong
Amid renewed questions over the pervasiveness of alleged interference by China in Canadian elections and affairs broadly, opposition MPs voted Thursday afternoon to affirm a parliamentary committee's call for the federal government to strike a public inquiry.
'Scream as loud as you can': 5 boys rescued from NYC tunnel
Five mischievous boys had to be rescued after they crawled through a storm drain tunnel in New York City and got lost, authorities said.
Make sure to check your grocery bill otherwise you may pay more: Survey
A majority of Canadians have seen a mistake on their grocery receipts in the last year, according to a new survey conducted by Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University.
Asteroid to hurtle past Earth closer than the moon this weekend
An asteroid discovered just last week will pass closer to the Earth than the orbit of the moon this weekend, an occurrence so rare it happens only once in a decade, according to NASA.
Number of Canadians receiving EI at record lows, down 44 per cent from last year: StatCan
The number of Canadians receiving employment insurance benefits are at record lows and down 44 per cent from last year, new figures from Statistics Canada show.
Indigenous sisters developing video games to revitalize Mohawk language
Two Kanien'keha:ka (Mohawk) sisters from Montreal are on a mission that is close to their hearts: to save their ancestors' first language by developing video games young and old can play.
Here are the locations of the first 12 new Zellers stores
Zellers has opened the first of 25 new locations within Hudson's Bay stores across the country. The Canadian retail chain launched 12 stores in Ontario and Alberta Thursday, along with a new e-commerce website.