We're all disappointed, Chirico says

Conservative Party candidate Peter Chirico
pauses while addressing his supporters last night at the Best Western. Chirico lost his bid to become Nipissing-Timiskaming MP, being defeated by incumbent Liberal Anthony Rota. Photo by Bill Tremblay, Special to BayToday.ca.

Peter Chirico says he worked hard and stayed on track.

But it wasn’t enough.

Chirico, the Conservative Party candidate, lost his quest to become only the third Conservative MP in over 100 years in the riding now known as Nipissing-Timiskaming.

Incumbent Liberal MP Anthony Rota handily beat Chirico by almost 5,000 votes Monday night, crashing the hopes of Conservative faithful that the area would go from red to blue.

In winning, Rota just about doubled the 2,500-vote plurality he had achieved over Conservative candidate Al McDonald in the 2004 federal election.

Rota’s victory was never in doubt from the time results started coming in from local polls.

Chirico’s supporters and family members—he quipped that half the people there were from his family—milled quietly around the ball room at the Best Western as it became increasingly apparent the race would not be neck and neck.

“We’re all very disappointed, none more than Peggy and I,” Chirico told the crowd while delivering his concession speech.

“There’s nothing we could have done differently in this campaign. We worked hard, we stayed on track, stayed on message, and it’s not the wrong message, it’s the right message.”

Chirico, North Bay's deputy mayor, thanked his campaign team “from the bottom of my heart.”

He said the local Conservatives had run a “great” campaign.

“It’s been an amazing experience, it’s been eight months of going hard, I’ve lost 30 pounds, I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been,” Chirico told reporters.

“I have a great team, a great family and I’m proud of all of them.”

Chirico, who had called Rota to congratulate him on the victory, admitted the riding would be a “tough” riding to crack.

“With only two Conservatives over 100 years we knew it was going to be an uphill fight,” Chirico said.

“There were three of us who didn’t win tonight, it was a great campaign by everyone and I had a blast. It was quite an experience.”

Chirico simply smiled when asked by one reporter what it would mean not to have a government MP in the riding.

“I guess we’ll just wait and see, won’t we,” was his reply.