Hundreds of supporters of the People's Party of Canada gathered outside The Leaky Tank restaurant to hear from the party's leader Wednesday morning.
Maxime Bernier kicked off day 32 of the election campaign with a rally at the Highway 40 truck stop in Sarnia.
"I'm very pleased to be here and I'm very impressed also," Bernier told Blackburn News. "A lot of people are coming. It's a nice crowd. People that want to have their country back."
Bernier said the main concern is freedom.
"The vaccine passport that will be enforced here in Ontario, it is enforced in Quebec, and I believe that this election will be kind of a referendum on more government control or less government control."
Starting September 22, proof of vaccination will be required in some settings in Ontario.
Bernier believes those attending the rally were ready to fight for their way of life.
"I'm there with them and we are the only political party at the federal level that will fight to be sure that lockdowns, stay-at-home orders, curfews, won't happen anymore."
Bernier also had stops planned in Inwood, Chatham, London and Aylmer Wednesday.
"I don't know what will be the result of the next election, but I believe Brian [Everaert] has a chance to be elected and I believe that some of our candidates will be elected. I'm very realistic, I won't be Prime Minister after this campaign, but this movement is growing step by step and we will start that common sense revolution."
Sarnia-Lambton PPC candidate Brian Everaert at Wednesdays rally with PPC leader Maxime Bernier in Sarnia. September 15, 2021
Sarnia-Lambton PPC candidate Brian Everaert said the momentum for the local campaign has been climbing since April.
"I think we're taking the labour vote, I think we're taking the nurses vote, I think we're taking personal support workers' votes," said Everaert. "These people don't want to be forced into mandated vaccines."
Everaert believes mandated vaccinations strain an already depleted workforce.
"We've got a bunch of people that are complaining all the time that we don't have enough workers and then they're going to turn around and tell them that they're going to get rid of them if they don't take this mandated shot."
To date, no other party leaders have been to the riding this campaign.
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau was in Halifax Wednesday, the Conservative's Erin O'Toole was in Quebec and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh was in Essex.
