He has to appear confident, but not too confident; exude momentum but not too much; to veer leftward but not can't alienate centrist voters
Author of the article:
By John Ivison
Published Apr 23, 2025
Last updated 2hours ago
3 minute read
Join the conversation
Article content
VICTORIA — “Friends, pinkos and separatists, lend me your votes.”
THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS
Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.
- Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.
- Unlimited online access to National Post.
- National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.
- Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.
- Support local journalism.
SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE ARTICLES
Enjoy the latest local, national and international news.
- Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events.
- Unlimited online access to National Post.
- National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.
- Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.
- Support local journalism.
REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES
Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.
- Access articles from across Canada with one account.
- Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.
- Enjoy additional articles per month.
- Get email updates from your favourite authors.
THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.
Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.
- Access articles from across Canada with one account
- Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments
- Enjoy additional articles per month
- Get email updates from your favourite authors
Sign In or Create an Account
or
View more offers
Article content
We apologize, but this video has failed to load.
Try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.
John Ivison: Carney dreams of majority but dare not say it Back to video
We apologize, but this video has failed to load.
Try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Article content
Mark Carney wasn’t quite as churlish as to insult his left-of-centre rivals but his pitch from the upper deck of Victoria’s Empress Hotel, overlooking the harbour, was to appeal to progressive voters to “vote with me, for positive reasons, regardless of which party you supported in the past.”
Article content
Story continues below
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
“We need to come together to fight Donald Trump together,” he said.
Article content
Platformed
This newsletter tackles hot topics with boldness, verve and wit. (Subscriber-exclusive edition on Fridays)
By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.
Interested in more newsletters? Browse here.
Article content
The only certainty in politics is that nothing is certain. But all the available evidence suggests that the Liberals are on course for an election victory on Monday.
Article content
Everything is coming up roses for Carney right now. On Wednesday, Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government issued an open letter saying that the current child-care deal with the federal government comes to an end next April and the province wants Ottawa to step up with “stable and adequate funding” to extend the program. Premier Doug Ford might just as well have stuck a “Vote Carney” sign on his front lawn. The Liberal leader’s response was unequivocal in Victoria. “No problem. I’m absolutely standing behind $10-a-day child care in Canada.”
Article content
If victory looks likely, what’s less clear is whether it would be a majority or minority government.
Article content
This is a high-wire act for Carney. He has to appear confident, but he can’t appear too confident; to give the impression of momentum but not too much momentum; to veer leftward but not so far left that he alienates centrist voters.
Article content
Story continues below
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
The Liberal leader professed common cause with the NDP, but make no mistake, he is back in Victoria because he wants to bury, not praise, the New Democrats, who hold all but one of the seven seats on Vancouver Island.
Article content
Read More
- John Ivison: Conservatives’ platform undermines their attacks on Liberal profligacy
- John Ivison: Carney takes to showboating as the Liberals savour their comfort zone
Advertisement embed-more-topic
Story continues below
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has attacked the $28 billion in “undefined spending cuts” he says are in the Liberal platform. But until now, Carney seems not to have mentioned the New Democrats once during this whole campaign.
Article content
He was finally persuaded to, in answer to a reporter’s question, saying that when he thinks of what the NDP calls “progressive policies,” he thinks of “the policies and institutions that are at the heart of this country.”
Article content
The collapse of the NDP vote means that ridings they won comfortably in 2021 are now in play, the Liberals say, including that of veteran B.C. MP Peter Julian in New Westminster—Burnaby—Maillardville.
Article content
There are no rumblings of adrift New Democrats “coming home” back to the party, despite Singh’s appeal to do so.
Article content
The story in Quebec is less clear cut. In 2021, the Liberals won 33 seats and the Bloc 32. President Donald Trump’s threats initially drove many traditional Bloc supporters into the arms of the Liberals, conscious that Quebec culture would be swamped if Trump’s most expansive ambitions were fulfilled. The338Canada.compoll aggregator currently projects 43 Liberal seats, 22 Bloc and 12 Conservatives in Quebec.
Advertisement 2
Advertisement
This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.
Article content
But as Trump’s threats have receded, and Carney’s victory has grown more assured, there are signs that Bloc supporters are less ardent about sticking with the Liberals.
Article content
As my colleague Antoine Trépanier noted Wednesday, the Liberal majority runs through Quebec but party sources suggest the prospect is slipping away.
Article content
BQ Leader Yves-François Blanchet is telling Quebecers that Carney’s victory is a certainty and that the Bloc is now “on the offence.”
Article content
Marc Miller, the former Liberal immigration minister who is running again in Montreal, said that he is not seeing a Bloc rebound. “If it’s happening, it’s recent and they (those Bloc voters) probably weren’t coming over anyway,” he said.
Article content
When asked why he needs a majority, Carney said the country is in the process of joining together. “It is important we have a strong government to face President Trump,” he said.
Article content
Quebec will be the kingmaker, and its voters will likely decide precisely how strong that government is.
Article content
jivison@criffel.ca
Twitter.com/IvisonJ
Article content
Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what’s really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. Sign up here.
Article content
This advertisement has not loaded yet.
