Kootenay-Columbia NDP members will get a chance in Kimberley Saturday to take the measure of their potential candidate in the next federal election.

Party President Deb Daniel announced Tuesday that the party will hold its AGM at the Kimberley Elks Hall 1 p.m. Sept. 18 and the two NDP candidates in the race will be given 20 minutes each to speak.

Both Rhonda Barter of Creston and Mark Shmigelsky of Invermere have taken up the invitation to speak, said Daniel. Each will explain why they would be the most likely candidate to win the riding back from the Conservative, she said.

Daniel said incumbent Kootenay-Columbia MP Jim Abbott, who announced he won?t run again in February, was a popular MP but when he?s gone it will create an opportunity for the NDP ?I think we have a wonderful chance. We?ve made major strides within our organization to help the candidate and I?m really looking forward to the next round.?

A federal election looks unlikely this year so whoever wins the NDP nod will have lots of time to make themselves known to the electorate and build the necessary organization to take the riding, Daniel said.

?Mr Abbott was very entrenched here and he was a nice guy and we wish him a happy retirement, but now we?re very excited about the possibilities of someone new winning the riding and we?re looking forward to seeing that happen. There may even be a third candidate pop up. Who knows??

The general public is welcome to attend the meeting too, and if they buy or renew their membership, they can participate in the vote to elect a new executive and question the candidates after they speak, said Daniel. Both Barter and Shmigelsky say they?re looking forward to Saturday?s AGM and a chance to impress the party faithful.

?From the time I was a little girl, I wanted to serve the people and fight injustice,? said Barter, who is a Creston businesswoman, artist and community activist. ?I believe every person has something they can contribute to society as a leader and if you can find that gift in a person and bring it forward without envying other people?s gifts this world would be a lot better place.?

Shmigelsky, who was soundly defeated by Abbott when he ran as a Liberal in Invermere in 1997 and was elected mayor of Invermere three times, says he doesn?t think his defection from the Liberals will hurt him with the NDP.

?Obviously, I?ve got to answer the question why I switched and I guess first and foremost I was invited by a number of long-term NDP supporters including one MLA (Norm Macdonald). So I will certainly be addressing that (at the meeting) I feel good about the switch.?

Another issue that both candidates are likely to have to address at the meeting is the future of the controversial long gun registry that is due to come up for a critical vote in Parliament Sept. 22. The NDP caucus is deeply divided on the issue and the overall vote is so close that the NDP vote is likely to determine the outcome.

Asked where she stands on the registry, Barter was clear. ?We register everything. We register boats, cars, births, deaths, everything. It?s just a registry. It?s like registering a car. I could all of a sudden say no, it?s criminal. I don?t have to register my car, but I do and if I had a gun I?d register it too.

Even though many rural NDP supporters are solidly against the registry, Barter is solidly for it. ?I think it?s a wonderful thing. It had glitches at the beginning . . . but now it?s going through smoothly and it only costs about three million a year to run it.?

When questioned on the same issue, Shmigelsky initially said he didn?t have a position on the registry, but would take his lead from his constituents. ?If I was a Member of Parliament right now I would have spent the last two months going around this riding finding out how people think.

?The problem with this issue is that it has become so politically divisive. We?ve seen the NRA (U.S. National Rifle Association) become involved the past decade. They?re not out there trying to make it work. They?re trying to destroy the long gun registry.?

However, after further questioning, Shmigelsky gave the controversial registry a qualified approval. ?Obviously the police chiefs have come out and said the long gun registry works . . . it?s a public safety issue that I think most gun owners actually believe in.

?There are things that they need to work on. I?d like to see the annual fee for registering gone . . . None-gun owners have a role to play in this too so if you?re going to pin me on a position I think it (the registry) works and it should stay but it should also have some changes to reflect the rural nature of most of this country.?