He’s in the running but not likely, and he hasn’t said he would make the attempt. I don’t think any of Harper’s cronies are moderate enough and CPC supporters are widely demanding a moderate leader. Everyone is currently talking about Jason Kenney, but that’s early days talk I think, he’ll prove too hawkish & socially conservative to fit the bill for regaining power.
Oh and Clement hasn’t done much on the national stage, but for reasons that evade me is well regarded by many CPC for his work at the Treasury Board. As well, recall that the census issue doesn’t loom nearly as large among CPC supporters as otherwise.
This victory by the Liberals was much more at the expense of the NDP than the CPC. It’s a bit disappointing IMO, especially when they claim a “positive message of hope” and a lack of negative campaigning, when their primary strategy was the ABC campaign which by it’s very nature is negative and undemocratic.
The Canadian public will be better served by the LPC, but Canada’s democratic institutions suffered a blow in this election by legitimizing more than ever before the vote against over the vote for.
I was hoping for a third party for many reasons, not the least of which was simply as a hedge against Canada becoming ever more firmly a 2-party system.
This CBC article lists some candidates (bizarrely including some who have declared they won’t be running): After Stephen Harper, who will lead the Conservatives? | CBC News and to be honest they are a bit of a sorry bunch. I don’t know Kelly Leitch, but Raitt was on the radio this morning saying that she didn’t know why they lost, and, honestly, Maxime Bernier? Charest would certainly signal that the old PCs had taken back the party, but that seems like a fantasy to me (and his potential ties to corruption are certainly problematic).
I think it’s pretty sad that the NDP lost so much support. Basically there was a moment a couple of weeks before the election when Canadians had to decide who was the anti-Harper candidate and Trudeau was in the lead, so that was that. The good news from this election was that voter turnout was way up. I would have much rather had a Liberal minority, though, both so that they’d be working on the common elements of the Liberal and NDP platforms; and so that the Conservatives would have their chance to make the same mistake the Liberals did the last time they lost and think of themselves as the natural government on a time out, leading to years of failure.
Yeah all early days is the thing. People will automatically go with what they know whether seeking same-same or moderate and the media does the same. It will take weeks to see what evolves, as new options present themselves.
I think some possibilities are people that are currently well regarded by conservatives in general but who were shut out by Harper & Co. People like Scott Reid in Ontario among the currently elected, but otherwise they may have to look among the party for unelected contenders as Harper & Co had a tight hold on just who was allowed to run at all federally. Maybe among Provincial govts someone will pop up.
We do have these folks, but they don’t seem to do a great deal. Case in point, Ben Carson is promoting his book in between campaign stops, so is he campaigning while also being supported at promotions by his publisher? This is illegal, or at the very least, shady, and I’m sure the FEC has put out a strongly worded statement about it…or not:
At least there is a huge test looming for judging this LPC government, one that will determine with deafening sureness whether they will govern for the electors or the elected.
The most viewed video at the CBC regarding the election, which has also garnered 2 million views and over 200,000 shares now on FB since premiering on CBC & FB the day after the election?
None other than the eminently respected Dave Meslin of Toronto, whose respectful pants-ing of I’m A Handsome Man-thing on live television is so much fun to watch. Look for Subjective Vs Math, a great moment (I’m betting you’ve seen it, that’s for others)
So anyway, Electoral Reform. The LPC campaigned on it, quickly latching on after it gained popularity for the NDP. But! Now the FPTP system has once again served the LPC so very well, will they follow through on a promise supported/demanded by almost all LPC & NDP & GPC supporters and even a few CPC peeps?
If they don’t, we’ll know just what we’ve got, a same-same Campaign Left - Move Right LPC with just a new twist, name recognition, to help them secure and keep power.
Their only out? Unfortunately it is a LPC standby policy of dodge-em. They may choose 10-20 years of study as requisite for such a change.
That’s what I’ve been thinking. Election reform doesn’t happen because people who win majorities don’t think the will be served by it. If the Liberals or NDP had won a minority then they could have been passing a proportional representation system together as a “make sure Harper (or Harper 2) never gets autocratic control again” policy. But now that Harper is out of the picture and Trudeau is considering how the system worked for him, he might have another thought. Of course the Liberal promise was always to study first, execute later. Unlike the NDP they didn’t have a specific election reform in mind but instead promised to figure out how to reform elections after being elected.
If they want to cop-out, they can do what the Ontario Liberals did, let some academics design a system that is well balanced but too complex* and then have a referendum. A lot of the public desire for a new system might be fueled by Harper hatred that will have run out in a few years anyway.
* “Too complex” seems to have a very low bar, which is why I personally advocate random ranked ballot.
Yeppers. I like PR, not sure which system I’d like or expect, but one of the things I like is that we’d probably see ranked/pref balloting at the party level to compile their candidate lists.
But yeah, complexity. The current system isn’t simple but people know it, or think they do. It’d take a generation before people quit claiming they are too dumb to accept PR, and that’d be after it’s implemented.
And you are absolutely, utterly correct in that. Anecdotally, I do know there was a great deal of pushback against the longer census form that was introduced in the last census (IIRC), other than that, I’m ignorant.
