Canada Votes Today...

[Jimmy Higgins]

...well, early voting started a bit ago and turnout has be huge. Record breaking.

This election was supposed to be the coronation of Poilievre with the Liberals polling dreadfully low. PM Trudeau stepped down and the Liberals decided to go Macron on the party and put forth a rather moderate and uncharismatic businessman in charge. The change, of course, wasn't in a vacuum. Donald Trump was also out there threatening stupid stuff, tariffs, 51st state, mocking the nation.

This shouldn't really have hurt the Conservatives too much, except that Poilievre modeled his political style after Trump. Name calling, little actual content, and almost no real passion for the people. The nation took notice. Canada was angry... a nation not typically known for their anger. The Liberals, buoyed by the former Bank Governor of the country, seen as a moderate, began to rocket back up the polls, taking from the Conservatives and bleeding out the NDP and likely gaining votes in Quebec. The Conservatives were struggling. They couldn't do their Trump acts anymore... and they even had a hard time speaking badly on Trump. Alberta PM asked Trump to soften the rhetoric until after the Conservatives won the election. ... That didn't go over well.

The biggest problem the Conservatives then had was a lack of that "something different". The two major parties don't have much between them in how to address the nation's issues outside of the mango menace to the south, Housing and Doctors. Carney is a businessman moderate, so he is against the carbon taxing and other policies that Poilievre would have targeted. Also, the big problem Canada has is that their problems are not easily solved with a bill here or there. It is infrastructural. So with little to stick out, all the Conservatives really have to go with is... 'But you people were tired of the Liberals, don't you remember!'

Polling has tightened up a little. PM Carney is a great professional, but terrible politician. He isn't remotely a good speaker and that becomes more and more obvious given time. Regardless, the Liberals have a decent lead in the polling, suggesting a better than 50% chance of a majority government... when the Conservatives looks certain to decimate the Liberals three months ago. This election will be determined by how the Liberals do in Quebec and the current NDP ridings out West.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Atlantic Provinces are in. No red wave seems apparent. It's the economy stupid comes to mind.

Course Conservatives have no plan for making things cost less.

 

[ideologyhunter]

Are they going ahead with that wall on their southern border?

 

[blastula]

CBC has called it for the Libs. Thanks, Trump, for once.

Highlights: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberals win election

Canadians are voting in federal elections that follow a tumultuous several months defined by U.S. President Donald Trump’s often unpredictable global tariff policies and his calls for Canada to become the 51st U.S. state.

apnews.com

 

[Tigers!]

Australia is next on Sat 3rd May.

 

[bilby]

Trump seems to have made the right wing so toxic that he has rescued both the Canadian Liberal Party, and the Australian Labor Party, from what seemed like certain defeat only a few weeks ago.

I guess that's one good thing he has actually achieved, albeit he didn't realise it.

 

[Axulus]

A competent, well educated, ethical, serious leader? Why can't we in the US have that?

How Mike Bloomberg describes him:

His deep understanding of people, markets, and public service, combined with his integrity and proven leadership, has made a meaningful impact globally. Mark is a leader who pairs vision with action and has a strong grasp of the economic challenges families and communities face today.

Fuck, this country is so dumb. Can we become the 11th province? Or how about just a Canadian territory that can't vote in the general election (like Puerto Rico is to the US).

 

[Tigers!]

A competent, well educated, ethical, serious leader? Why can't we in the US have that?

Beacuse such people are blocked from appearing on predeintsl or governor ballots? Your system appears to be allegric to such.
Or more likely they run a mile away. Shades of Sherman

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

It was an odd night. Atlantic Canada didn't start the night off well, but there were shades of it isn't all going the Conservatives' way. Liberals do well in Quebec, Conservatives overperform in Ontario, but gains in Toronto are very minimal. It looks like the blue collar NDP voter did, in some percentage head to the Conservatives, at least in the East, again showing this absurd movement of blue collar siding with the folks that really have never done a thing for them, but are throwing some attention their way, much like has happened in the US for the last 15 years.

Meanwhile, NDP collapse in BC provided the Libs more votes... out west. Four ridings short of an outright majority. Leader of BQ sounded like he might want to coalition with the Liberals. He didn't say anything like that, but the message he sent out seemed to imply that could be a thing. NDP have enough ridings to get coalition with Liberals without BQ. Liberals could still end up with a majority.

The best part of the night is Poilievre lost his riding and is out of the House of Commons. Fuck that Trump wannabee. Polling was almost dead-on, with 42% libs, 38% conservatives.

Now Carney will need to address the real world issues impacting Canada, a growing right-wing nationalist populist movement which is taking advantage of a housing shortage and blaming it on immigrants, and a dumbass south of the border who has no idea what he is doing. Carney simply appears to want to leave the US behind and dig deep into their energy portfolio and start making the nation a bit more global. If Trump doesn't want to play, Carney says that is okay.

 

[Elixir]

A competent, well educated, ethical, serious leader? Why can't we in the US have that?

Because the US is a mini Trump; overfed, self-adoring, disdainful of others, and unthinkingly stupid in our condescension to our inferiors (non-Americans).

So of course given a choice between a serious, unentertaining hard working person and a bloviating narcissistic fraudster blowhard showman, our preference can be easily predicted.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

A competent, well educated, ethical, serious leader? Why can't we in the US have that?

Beacuse such people are blocked from appearing on predeintsl or governor ballots? Your system appears to be allegric to such.
Or more likely they run a mile away. Shades of Sherman

Gore lost to W. Heck, McCain (before the pod people got him) lost to W.

Hillary Clinton lost to Trump. Clinton is extraordinarily self-serving (what national level politician isn't), but I wouldn't go to say she was unethical. Didn't have strong principals yes, but she did her job and did it well. Trump... well... he's about as unethical a person we've ever had as President.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Of the 11 ridings the Conservatives lead in, only three appear to be close enough for the Liberals to possibly turn them around (lead within the hundreds). A riding in New Brunswick, then Milton / Halton Hills and Windsor in Ontario. There is another close one in Kitchener, but the Greens are in second. There is one riding in Quebec, where the BQ candidate is up 28 votes on the Liberal candidate. The NDP are just barely ahead in Nunavut (which I imagine could have a few votes trailing) and BC where the Libs are in second.

In Terra Nova (eastern, but not East east) Newfoundland, the Libs have a 46 vote lead. That was a seat that appeared to be flipping blue, but the Liberal incumbent is just barely ahead.

So the Libs have a chance, but I wouldn't rate it s a great chance. They need 4 more seats for the majority. The one other thing in this election, other than the BQ's small takeaway, this is primarily a two party House which isn't typical in Canada.

 

[blastula]

NDP Singh also lost his riding.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

Just about done counting. They might recount a couple places. In Terra Nova, Liberal won by 12 votes.

Liberals pick up one more seat and have 169, so just barely not enough for a majority, but definitely the plurality. So NDP or BQ (both?) for coalition and we move on. Really interesting how both the Liberals and Conservatives overperformed in most places, again in large party due to the NDP collapse. Conservatives managed to flip ridings, but so did the Liberals.

NDP Singh also lost his riding.

They knew that was going to happen. NDP were plastered last night. But after so many years of Conservative party leadership in large part due to liberal party splitting, this is what can happen. It has been over a century, however, since two parties received 40+% of the vote.

 

[Tigers!]

A competent, well educated, ethical, serious leader? Why can't we in the US have that?

Because the US is a mini Trump; overfed, self-adoring, disdainful of others, and unthinkingly stupid in our condescension to our inferiors (non-Americans).

So when is something going to be done about that? Neither party appears to really want to change the situation .

So of course given a choice between a serious, unentertaining hard working person and a bloviating narcissistic fraudster blowhard showman, our preference can be easily predicted.

Sadly, yes. Go low and go hard.

 

[TSwizzle]

A competent, well educated, ethical, serious leader? Why can't we in the US have that?

How Mike Bloomberg describes him:

His deep understanding of people, markets, and public service, combined with his integrity and proven leadership, has made a meaningful impact globally. Mark is a leader who pairs vision with action and has a strong grasp of the economic challenges families and communities face today.

Oh goody, an elitist capitalist in charge.

Fuck, this country is so dumb. Can we become the 11th province? Or how about just a Canadian territory that can't vote in the general election (like Puerto Rico is to the US).

Patience, young Grasshopper. Newsom will save us.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

A competent, well educated, ethical, serious leader? Why can't we in the US have that?

How Mike Bloomberg describes him:

His deep understanding of people, markets, and public service, combined with his integrity and proven leadership, has made a meaningful impact globally. Mark is a leader who pairs vision with action and has a strong grasp of the economic challenges families and communities face today.

Oh goody, an elitist capitalist in charge.

Goes to show that conservatives are actually just contrarians. Liberals made a notable Macron like shift from liberal/family dynasty guy to a centrist banker. Oh... but going to the right isn't enough... and picking a guy with mad economic credentials, that doesn't matter now either. People remember how conservatives were always about real world knowledge and training?

All that Poilievre needed to do was act genuine in his care and love for Canada and he'd have won in a landslide. It is odd how Nationalists actually seem to actually not give a fuck about the countries they want to run.

 

[Elixir]

So when is something going to be done about that?

When Trump dies. At this point even Republican politicians are gritting their teeth and forcing smiles as they wait for him to croak.

Neither party appears to really want to change the situation .

Oh, the Dems desperately want to change the situation! If they pick up a majority in the House next year, there will be changes. But the rigging of the midterms by the fascists, is already well underway.
The damage the apricot has done to the judiciary will take decades to undo in any event.

 

[Elixir]

Oh goody, an elitist capitalist in charge.

Yeah, not like those salt-of-the-earth billionaires occupying every seat of power in the Trump regime.
What kind of brain worm is running your mouth, Swiz?

 

[TomC]

Oh goody, an elitist capitalist in charge.

As opposed to the USA?
Right now, the most powerful person in the country is an African immigrant with the morals of a rattlesnake.
Tom