Naturally, there’s plenty to catch up on from #vancon2011 – but before I get into the news from the convention, let’s note one relatively surprising omission from the agenda for most of the weekend.At the NDP’s previous convention in Halifax, delegates…
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Accidental Deliberations: Juxtaposition
Lorne Gunter desperately tries to pretend that nothing has changed in the NDP’s reach outside of Quebec:Outside Quebec the party is relevant in 60 or 70 ridings, with most of those concentrated in Toronto, Vancouver and the North. There was no NDP surg…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: For and against
Not surprisingly, the Cons are working feverishly to pretend that the message which won them a bare majority of seats in the House of Commons is of absolutely no consequence now that they hold them. So let’s set the record straight as to why it’s funda…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On shocking transformations
I suspect it’ll be quite some time before we see an end to stories about how the NDP’s Quebec breakthrough means that it’ll have to radically change direction. But let’s put the spin in perspective.In their first opportunity to introduce bills as Offic…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading.- Gerald Caplan has a modest suggestion to ensure the Senate doesn’t do any more avoidable harm to Canada’s democracy:That we have no need for a second house of Parliament of any kind is the first proposition h…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your midweek reading.- The Star skewers the Cons’ insistence on pushing ahead with bad budget choices:As the Star argued during the election, Canada needs progressive economic vision in the form of strategic investments in sc…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Moved to action
It remains to be seen how far the NDP will get in pushing for all parties to engage in meaningful discussion about policy. But if you’re wondering whether there’s already evidence of progress in the first days of the new session of Parliament, look no …
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: One of these things is not like the others
One of these things just doesn’t belong. See if you can spot the difference in the following single-election results – and consider what it might mean for each party’s future strategy…
Vote Share | Seats | Provinces w Seats | Provinces under 20% | High Prov% | Low Prov% | Rebates |
30.6% | 103 | 8 | 2 | 42.9% | 15.4% | 306 | 25.5% | 66 | 5 | 5 | 58.9% | 3.9% | 182 | 30.2% | 103 | 9 | 1 | 52.5% | 15.3% | 283 | 29.6% | 99 | 8 | 1 | 61.7% | 8.8% | 251 |
For those wondering, the parties who posted those totals are respectively the NDP in 2011, the Canadian Alliance in 2000, the Libs in 2006, and the Cons in 2004. And of course, each party served as the official opposition following the listed general election.
So let’s ask the rhetorical question: is there an obvious reason why one of those parties might have had both a glaring need to pursue a merger, and an obvious opportunity in doing so?
And conversely, is there an equally obvious reason why the other three might see fit to work from an existing national base, rather than pursuing wrenching structural changes?
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On flattering comparisons
Yes, it’ll take time to break the habits that have formed over the past few years – and it may well be that the Harper Cons will continue to stonewall and distort no matter what they face from the Official Opposition. But if this turns into a consisten…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On dominance
Meanwhile, the obvious potential for growth in NDP support figures to have some rather important effects on the Cons’ strategy as well. After all, their current coalition of support left them little room for error even with a split opposition – and if …
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On fading reasons
There’s plenty to catch up on in Canadian politics from the past week, and I’ll try to cover the biggest news over the next couple of days. But let’s start with one polling tidbit that looks even more important than the NDP’s improving support totals:R…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Light blogging ahead
Off to a couple of undisclosed locations for the next week, with little to no blogging in the meantime. But let’s note one point worth watching as Parliament reconvenes.While I don’t think there’s much room for dispute that the Cons have tried to move …
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On questions and answers
Lawrence Martin’s theory on how the NDP can start making Question Period more substantive looks to be a good start. But I’ll add that there’s one more consideration worth taking into account – especially in the early days of the new Parliament.After al…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On losing strategies
Sure, Greg is right to criticize the Libs for being willing to provoke a national unity crisis for political gain. But I’m not sure when that became reason for surprise: have we already forgotten that the party’s main Quebec strategy during its stay in…
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On shadows
A couple of quick notes on the NDP’s shadow cabinet announced today…The most intriguing set of announcements comes in the form of several up-and-coming MPs assigned to a counterintuitive set of roles. Indeed, if one had to guess on the placement of L…
Continue readingThings fall apart, the centre cannot hold
My friends, there’s no denying the impact of the past couple of days. The way it stands now, we’re going to have to live with a Harper majority for the next four or five years. And while it’s nice to fantasize about the Conservatives doing themselv…
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