Trudeau in the ‘penalty box,’ Conservatives top Liberals, poll suggests

The Liberals have fallen slightly behind the Conservatives, with 34 per cent of Canadians saying they would vote for the party, compared to 36 per cent who say they would vote for the Conservatives, though many still largely prefer Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to the opposition leaders, according to a new Campaign Research poll. “They’re placing him […]
Canadians conflicted on Indigenous issues and Trudeau’s handling of the file, poll shows

A new poll by the Angus Reid Institute outlines the complicated relationship Canada has with its Indigenous population, offering up thoughts on Indigenous status, whether or not the treaties have been properly honoured, and how the public feels about the residential school system. Fifty-three per cent of those who responded also noted that fundamentally “Canada […]
Kathleen Wynne made it all about Kathleen Wynne

TORONTO—Kathleen Wynne’s former cabinet colleague doesn’t mince words. “Kathleen is all about Kathleen,” the former colleague says. “That’s always her focus.” A former Liberal candidate, Jim Curran, was livid about Wynne’s ahistorical decision to concede defeat days before the vote, thereby consigning her candidates and caucus to political oblivion. Said Curran: “What Kathleen did to […]
Trans Mountain purchase to expose Liberals on multiple fronts, say pollsters: ‘they wear everybody’s mistakes’

Buying the $4.5-billion Trans Mountain pipeline has made the governing Liberals politically vulnerable on multiple fronts and will likely endanger seats in British Columbia and Quebec without providing a boost in Alberta, say pollsters. The controversial move, announced by Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr (Winnipeg South Centre, Man.) and Finance Minister Bill Morneau (Toronto Centre, […]
One year on, a report card on Andrew Scheer’s Conservative leadership

OTTAWA—This isn’t a love letter from a delusional former hard-core partisan or an attempt at butt-kissing the Conservative leader. Qualifications aside, as Andrew Scheer passes the one-year mark of his leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada, he has done a solid job. But Conservatives shouldn’t be popping champagne corks yet, as Justin Trudeau—despite some […]
Canadians see a home ownership crisis that governments aren’t addressing

Home prices have been rising for nearly two decades, far outpacing average income growth. The result is a growing anxiety among younger Canadians about their prospects for home ownership and a middle-class lifestyle. Most feel their political leaders are failing to address this situation—or even making it worse. New public opinion research, commissioned by the […]
Rae Days in the rearview: polling shows few Ontarians fear an NDP government

OTTAWA—The adventure that has been Ontario politics in 2018 just continues to get wilder. The once dull, predictable province when it came to political outcomes is now tilting frantically, like some aged roller-coaster ride. With a couple of weeks to go before the June 7 vote, polls, yes those dastardly things, are all showing public […]
What Trudeau’s India trip taught the Conservatives

OAKVILLE, ONT.—When recent polls indicated Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had bounced back from his recent dip in popularity, it was easy to conclude the Conservative Party, which in some surveys had actually surpassed the Liberals, had somehow lost its momentum. But that would be a wrong conclusion, not because the Conservatives still have any momentum, […]
Trudeau’s renewed focus on economy drives up Liberal support among males: Nanos poll

A two-year decline in male support for the federal Liberals appears to be reversing, and a leading pollster attributes the change to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s renewed focus on fiscal and economic issues instead of social issues. “Now that they’re focusing more on economic issues, the greater focus on the NAFTA negotiations, even the focus on […]
B.C. Liberal MPs tout environmental measures in Trans Mountain talks with constituents, but opposition MPs say Grits to ‘absolutely’ lose support in 2019

British Columbia Liberal MPs say they’re touting environmental investments and protections brought in by the Liberal government for the $7.4-billion Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project with constituents, with some suggesting their voters are split roughly 50-50 over the issue. But outspoken pipeline opponents NDP MP Kennedy Stewart (Burnaby South, B.C.) and Green Party Leader Elizabeth […]