Progressive Conservatives in Lambton Kent Middlesex will select new candidate on Saturday

Members of the Progressive Conservatives will nominate a candidate to replace former MPP Monte McNaughton this weekend.

First elected in October 2011, McNaughton's resignation at the end of September caught many people by surprise.

He was viewed as a valued member of Doug Ford’s government, serving as labour minister for four years.

Now, two candidates are vying for the nomination of the riding association.

Neal Roberts is long-time chief of the Middlesex-London Paramedic Service. He is currently on leave from that position, as he seeks the nomination, "I have a commitment to serving the public and this is another extension to that."

Businessman Steve Pinsonneault is also hoping to be the candidate in the riding, “I've been on Chatham-Kent council for 17 years and during that time I've picked up a lot of knowledge."

While the riding has been in PC party hands for over a decade, prior to McNaughton’s tenure it was held by Liberal MPP Maria Van Bommel.

Steve Pinsonneault. (CTV News file image)The nomination meeting takes place Saturday morning at the Caradoc Sands Golf Club on the south edge of Strathroy.

Speeches take place at 9 a.m. and the results are expected in by 1:30 p.m.

Pinsonneault says the focus for the region has to remain on maintaining roads, sewers and water lines. He also says supporting farmers is critical, "It's not just fields of crops, it's the processing end of it and the distribution. There's quite a ripple effect from that as well. You have all the people that feed that industry and that creates a lot of jobs."

Communities like Strathroy, Komoka and Mount Brydges have seen unprecedented population growth, with the work-at-home trend attracting more people to rural areas.

Neal Roberts. (CTV News file image)Roberts says there has to be continued emphasis on broadband connectivity.

He also believes the innovations he spearheaded with the paramedic service could address broader rural health-care concerns, "Providing community-based care in the patient's living room, not the emergency room, the Middlesex-London Paramedic Service was one of the first to advance that."

There are approximately 600 registered members of the party in the riding eligible to select a new candidate.

A by-election must take place before the end of March.