Removal of Conservative candidate Khattra from Dufferin-Caledon leaves ‘a mess,’ unclear how the party will choose new candidate: Conservative MP Tilson
The Conservative Party is stuck with a “mess” in Dufferin-Caledon, and it’s not clear what process it will use to find a new candidate there after it rejected the nomination last week of Harzadan Khattra, following complaints of irregularities in the March 19 nomination contest that he won to represent the Tories in the Ontario […]
Washington election campaign tech conference shows political ad, outreach tactics that could come north of the border
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Imagine being followed all day by ads for your local MP, or one of their challengers in an election campaign, while you listen to music, watch your favourite TV show, check your texts, and browse social media. That may only be a few years away, and digital strategists in the United States are working […]
Comms aide Célia Canon exits Justice Minister Lametti’s office
Justice Minister David Lametti will soon have some new communications support in light of communications adviser Célia Canon’s recent exit from his office. Ms. Canon marked her last day working for Mr. Lametti on April 22. She’d been in place as a communications adviser—and de facto press secretary—in the minister’s office since August 2018, starting […]
Federal government ad spending rises after PM’s department bumps up limit 45 per cent in election year
The federal government is expected to spend about 60 per cent more on advertising in 2018-19, the last fiscal year before an election, than the year before, thanks to an increase to the ad spending limit by the Privy Council Office. The Canada Revenue Agency is one of the departments to have taken advantage of […]
Anxious Liberals want Grits to fill all-important national campaign director position soon
With the next election day only six months away and the campaign unofficially underway, the federal Liberals have yet to officially name a national campaign director which is creating some anxiousness among party members eager to get started, say Liberals. “We’re not getting clear directions from the party,” said one long-time Liberal in an interview […]
Crowded field of candidates expected for Liberal nomination in GTA swing riding of Oakville
A crowded field of candidates is expected to seek the Liberal Party’s nomination in the affluent, GTA swing riding of Oakville, which opened up after rookie incumbent Liberal MP John Oliver decided not to seek re-election in the October election. The Liberal Party recently officially opened the contest, but as of last week had not […]
Kenney’s Alberta win both good, bad for Trudeau, Scheer, say strategists
Alberta premier-designate Jason Kenney’s victory may deliver the political boogeyman Prime Minister Justin Trudeau needs to ward off the federal Conservatives, but it will also further test his—and the official opposition’s—ability to manage dynamics with the provinces, say political observers. Tuesday’s election capped the end of Alberta’s four-year flirtation with the NDP and return to […]
Budget misses the mark on international development
On March 19, Finance Minister Bill Morneau released his government’s fourth federal budget. In an election year, it sought to reach potential voters on what matters to them: millennials with support for home ownership, parents with child-care subsidies, seniors with pensions, and workers with skills training. It also used spending and incentives to signal a […]
Time for Ontario lawyers to scrap rule that violates their freedom of expression
Beginning in mid-April, Ontario lawyers have started voting to elect their representative leaders (called “benchers”) and have a chance to revisit a strange new rule that binds all of the more than 58,000 lawyers and paralegals of the Law Society of Ontario, whether working or retired. Under this new mandatory “statement of principles” (SOP), lawyers […]
PM Trudeau ought to go back to government by cabinet
OTTAWA—Back in 2013, the Liberal Party of Canada was looking for a new executive director. I applied and was on the short list, but not hired. Nonetheless, it was a good experience: I was able to offer my own ideas to the interview board about the way the party and its then-new leader could promote […]
