Sibling rivalry: The Millers face off in upcoming N.B. election

Two brothers are running against each other in the upcoming New Brunswick election. Mom and dad say the competition is heating up at home.

In the basement of their parents home in Upper Kent, N.B., about 15 minutes north of Florenceville-Bristol, Rowan Patrick Miller and Meriet Gray Miller compete in a friendly, but fiery, game of foosball. 

Four years separate the brothers, but they have a tight-knit relationship.

That brotherly love is about to get tested beyond the foosball table. They are competing against each other in the upcoming provincial election.

Rowan, who will turn 24 on Tuesday, is the Green party candidate for Carleton-Victoria. Meriet, 19, is representing the NDP.

“We're pretty close, we do a lot together, we hang out a lot together,” said Meriet.

But the brothers agree the election is a new level of competition for them.

“The time when we were on a provincial ballot together, I mean that's probably going to be the high point of any sibling rivalry, I'd imagine,” said Rowan. ” I can't imagine it being worse — maybe on the federal ballot.”

“Before this it was like, ‘Oh, who's the best at this video game?'” said Meriet.

The brothers are running against Liberal Andrew Harvey, who holds the seat. Margaret Johnson is the PC candidate and Terry Leigh Sisson is running for the People's Alliance of New Brunswick.

Despite the fun and games, the brothers are committed to representing their respective parties. 

Rowan ran for the Greens in the 2019 federal election. He said he never thought twice about adding his name to the provincial ballot for this election.

“They wanted a fresh young voice that could speak articulately about the critical issues to the region,” said Rowan, who will build on his experience from his federal campaign. 

Meriet's chance to run in the election came through Rowan's connection with NDP leader, Mackenzie Thomason. Rowan and Thomason went to university together. 

Knowing that Rowan was connected with the Greens, Thomason thought he would ask Meriet to consider the NDP.

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“I immediately thought it would be interesting,” Meriet said. “This would be a great opportunity for me, and it would really help expand a progressive message to a younger voice.”

The two brothers know they are in competition, but they see a lot of common ground between their respective parties. They are hoping to use the next couple of weeks to raise awareness for environmental, social and health-care issues together.

“We hope that we can respectively increase the vote shares of both the Green and the NDP from over the previous election,” said Meriet.

The brothers hope they can be role models for other young people to speak out and get involved in politics and issues around the province.

Parents approval

Despite the Miller brothers downplaying the competition, mom and dad say they can sense some increased tension in the house.

“Originally it was a lot friendlier, but I think the competitive juices get flowing a little too quickly,” said their father, Brad.

He said he hopes the boys have a good time with the experience and people listen to what they have to say. 

“I'm so proud of them that I hope they can show leaders how parties should get along,” said their mother, Patty. She admits she laughed when she realized they were running against one another.

The parents will have a difficult choice to make on election night.

“We're going to have to split it,” laughed Patty. 

“We've got lots of many-sided dice that we can roll to see who gets the votes,” Brad joked. 

As for the brothers, they don't want to think about their parents having to make that kind of decision. They suggest a possible foosball tournament in the basement to help decide how mom and dad vote on Sept. 14.

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