-
Rematch in Etobicoke Centre
Despite all the close votes over the years, this is a first: Election result in Toronto riding thrown out by judge Conservative MP Ted Opitz’s 2011 federal election win last year in Etobicoke Centre was declared null and void today in a challenge by former Liberal MP Borys Wrzesnewskyj. Opitz won the May 2011 election […]
-
The Third Way
The latest Ipsos poll paints a rather dreary picture of Liberal fortunes, with what was once the natural governing party languishing more than 15 points behind both the NDP and the Conservatives. Of course, the NDP are in their post-leadership honeymoon, the Liberals don’t have a permanent leader, and a horse race poll when politics […]
-
An update on all the people MAYBE running for Liberal leadership
The expectation is that rules for the Liberal leadership race will come down in June, setting the stage for a summer of getting to know the men and women wanting to lead Canada’s third party. But while we won’t know the rules of the race for another month or two, that hasn’t limited speculation in […]
-
The Race for Third
Back in February I asked readers of this blog who they thought would run for Liberal leader, and who they’d consider voting for. Admittedly, this is as far from a scientific poll as you’ll ever get, and I won’t pretend that the 500+ voters in this straw poll are all Liberals. But we’re not going […]
-
The premier Premier
The Institute for Research on Public Policy ranks Peter Lougheed as Canada’s best Premier from the last 40 years. Rounding out the top 5: 1. Peter Lougheed 2. William Davis 3. Allan Blakeney 4. Frank McKenna 5. Robert Bourassa I ran a similar “best Premier” contest among blog readers back in 2007, March-Madness Style. Lougheed came out […]
-
Happy Anniversary!
One year ago today, Stephen Harper turned an “unwanted election” into his first majority government, Jack Layton and the NDP soared to never before seen heights, and Liberals spent the evening curled up in a fetal position sobbing in the corner. On political anniversaries, it’s tempting to give each party a thumbs up or thumbs […]
-
McGuinty’s Majority Move
As I wrote on election night last fall, the line between majority and minority isn’t as rigid as it’s often made out to be. When the margin is this thin, one case of appendicitis can tip the scales and change the course of history. On Friday, Dalton McGuinty proved how fluid that majority line is, […]
-
Did the left blow it in Alberta?
Even though the end result was a Stephen Harper majority government, the NDP took a giant leap forward last May. In one election, the party may very well have taken the first step in killing off Canada’s natural governing party, positioning the Dippers to one day form government. Although last Monday’s Alberta election was a […]
-
Who saw it coming?
The answer to that question is “not very many of us”. More than 190 people entered the joint daveberta.ca and CalgaryGrit Great Alberta Election Pool, but like nearly all the pollsters and pundits, most entries were far away from the actual results on election night. Just 15% predicted a PC majority, and only 2 people […]
-
Margin of Error
I don’t think I’ve ever followed an election where the polls were as horribly off the mark as they were in Alberta. Last May, when the media jumped on the “pollsters blew it” bandwagon for not projecting a Tory majority, most companies were still within the margin of error on the final vote intent numbers. […]