More than a transgender activist, candidate Jennifer McCreath says

Jennifer McCreath, one of the candidates running in the federal riding of Avalon, says she doesn't want her campaign to hinge on the fact she's a transgender person.

McCreath has received a lot of national attention over several weeks because of her candidacy with the Strength in Democracy party.

A lot of the focus, McCreath said, is on her gender.

But McCreath, whose father Peter was an MP for Nova Scotia, said her diverse background as a civil servant in the Newfoundland and Labrador, Ontario and federal governments makes her the right person for the job.

"I think the trans story, I recognize that it's a novelty," McCreath told CBC News. "I'm the first trans-candidate to make a ballot. But at the same time, I've done a lot of work."

She said she's been inundated with media requests since her story has been picked up nationally.

McCreath said it's good the party is getting attention, but she doesn't want the focus to get lost. 

I'm the first trans candidate to make a ballot, but at the same time I've done a lot of work.- Jennifer McCreath

"Being pigeon-holed, you run of risk of being stuck with that label," she said. "People tend to forget that there are other hats that I wear." 

The Strength in Democracy party was formed last October when two MPs defected from the NDP and Bloc Québécois.

"I recognize there are a lot of votes that I'm not going to get, and I'm never going to get," she said.

"But there are a lot of undecided voters out there, there are a lot of voters out there who are upset and want to file a protest vote — they're not going to vote for someone, they're going to vote against some one."