D.O.A.'s Joe Keithley Running For Political Office in British Columbia

Joe Keithley, known to many as singer Joey Shithead for legendary punk band D.O.A., will be running for the New Democratic Party in the riding of Coquitlam-Burke Mountain in the next British Columbia provincial election.

According to The Province, the B.C. NDP officially approved the musician's nomination papers yesterday. He will run in the riding currently represented by Liberal MLA Douglas Horne.

"I always enjoy a challenge -- I think it's going to be great," Keithley told the publication. "And I think it is going to be a lot of fun and exciting. And if it is not exciting, then I'll find a way to make it exciting. It can't just be a snooze. You got to get out there and let people know what your ideas are and the way you are running."

Keithley, 56, said no nomination meeting date has been set and won't know the outcome until December. But he is planning to get his name out there and raise his profile through various activities. Keithley said fairness in government and youth issues are vital aspects in his campaign.

"Getting great support for my #NDP election bid," Keithley tweeted today (Aug. 23). "#DOA still rocking hard this fall across Canada"

The musician is no stranger to provincial politics, having run for the Green Party in both the 1996 and 2001 B.C. elections.

DOA are planning to release a new studio album We Come in Peace this year with tour dates in support of it. The band's last studio album was Talk - Action = 0 in 2010.

News of Keithley's running coincides with a ceremony in Toronto yesterday for the late NDP Federal Leader Jack Layton, marking the first anniversary of his death. City and Colour's Dallas Green, Ron Sexsmith and past-Broken Social Scene member Jason Collett performed at the ceremony.