Latest news with #Liberal-led
Vancouver Sun
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Vancouver Sun
Finding a million more Conservative votes: 'It's about figuring out a way to speak to women'
Ben Woodfinden, the 31-year-old former director of communications for Pierre Poilievre, understands the challenges faced by younger Canadians. Ten years of a Liberal-led, no-growth government, Ben laments, 'means they live in a country that doesn't work for them anymore.' They want change. And there's a flip side, he cynically suggests: Some Canadians are content with the status quo, because it benefits them. They bought houses decades ago that are worth 20 times what they paid for them. It's in their interest, he argues, to encourage unsustainable levels of immigrants to support existing social programs and to constrain investment in the infrastructure needed to re-energize the Canadian economy. 'A lot of people have had it pretty good, and the status quo in this country works for them,' Ben asserts. 'But what that means in reality is managed decline.' Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. These are the sort of people, he says, who lean into the nostalgic 'elbows up' nationalism ( the Mike Myers commercial being the most emblematic, he notes), reminding them of a Canada that no longer exists. 'That kind of vision of Canada,' he frowns, 'does not speak to me at all.' In 2022, Ben was tapped to be Poilievre's comms director, responsible for crafting the Conservative leader's public image and the party's populist, anti-elite messaging, targeting the gatekeepers — bureaucrats, regulators and corporate elites — who stand in the way of opportunity for ordinary Canadians. During the 2025 federal election, Ben became a point man in Poilievre's media strategy, often by-passing mainstream media in favour of more direct messaging. Ben's in Toronto when we connect for a conversation. Now resigned from his partisan role, and scheduled to return to McGill in the fall to finish his political science PhD, he's exhausted. 'I had two and a half years working for Pierre,' he says, taking off his glasses to rub his eyes. 'He is the hardest-working guy I've ever met in my life,' he chuckles. '…The biggest challenge for me is just keeping up with him. So I'm a bit burnt out.' There's a lot of soul-searching going on in conservative circles, he admits, and points to Poilievre's recent statement affirming the CPC's need to add roughly one million people to the conservative coalition to get the party over the finish line in a two-party system. 'New Canadians, younger Canadians, working-class Canadians — these are the kinds of people for whom the deal of this country has been fundamentally broken,' he asserts. 'So if you want to make that coalition cohesive, you need to add people to it that fit that mould.' And, he explains, 'If you add a bunch of disparate groups together that have different interests and values, different norms, that coalition will just fall apart at some point. 'I do think this is going to be a challenge for Carney and the Carney coalition,' he adds, and I concur. The Liberals siphoned off voters from the left and the right in the election, and beyond the 'protect us from Trump' mandate, the priorities of Carney's supporters won't necessarily align. Talk of the new kind of conservative coalition that's emerging animates Ben; his faint British accent (he moved to Canada as a teenager) becomes noticeably more pronounced as his enthusiasm builds. 'What group do you suggest could be added to this coalition?' I ask. 'Female voters' is Ben's unequivocal answer. 'We did very well with younger men,' he explains, 'and I think there are a lot of women, younger women … who face the same problems as young men … making it harder for them to achieve the things they want to achieve in life.' While I agree wholeheartedly with Ben's aspiration to engage women, it's no secret the Conservative messaging didn't land well with female voters in the federal campaign. We both wince recalling the backlash to Poilievre's observations about biological clocks early in the campaign. 'So I think it's going to be about figuring out a way to speak to women … on issues that affect them,' Ben reflects, in ways that don't alienate other people. But, he admits, it's a challenge to thread that needle. There are many divides bubbling up in Canada's political landscape — generational, regional, rural versus urban, education levels. And now gender. 'The parties of the right are increasingly male-dominated,' Ben notes, and the 'parties of the left are increasingly female-dominated.' It's an unhealthy social divide, he adds, 'a trend that's happening independent of any specific leader or any specific party, and I think that's part of why we didn't do as well with younger female voters.' These trends, Ben explains, are happening all over the Western world, all over advanced democracies. 'So you can accelerate them and you can minimize them, but you can't necessarily avoid them.' In an effort to turn the conversation in a more positive direction, I ask Ben about Poilievre's decision to run for election in Alberta. 'There's a touch of destiny about this,' Ben answers thoughtfully, 'I think he's going to be an important voice in the next few years, simultaneously speaking to those (western) frustrations and what needs to change, but also articulating a slightly different but more expansive vision, a more inclusive vision, of what it means to be Canadian. 'I think the centre of political gravity is slowing shifting west in Canada,' Ben continues, 'just following population trends and demographics.' And our vision of what it means to be Canadian needs to be updated, which he acknowledges is a big project and 'not something you can impose from the top down.' The ubiquitous symbol of Canada is the maple leaf, Ben explains, 'but you don't get maple trees west of Manitoba.' (He means sugar maples, as seen on the flag.) There are shared values across the country — he's lived in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Calgary, since immigrating to Canada — but, he observes, 'it's very much an eastern-centric Laurentian vision of what this country means, and I still think the future of Canada is very much out west … If people move within Canada, people go east to west, not west to east.' The resurgent wave of patriotism, triggered by Donald Trump's threats, is an opportunity to create a slightly different vision of what it means to be Canadian, Ben suggests, one that speaks to a Canada of 2025 and not a Canada of 1991. The last election was about change, Ben concludes, and that desire for change is not going to go anywhere. 'Some people think it will just bubble down, and I think it will just bubble up even more.' Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our newsletters here .
Edmonton Journal
18-05-2025
- Politics
- Edmonton Journal
Finding a million more Conservative votes: 'It's about figuring out a way to speak to women'
Article content Ben Woodfinden, the 31-year-old former director of communications for Pierre Poilievre, understands the challenges faced by younger Canadians. Ten years of a Liberal-led, no-growth government, Ben laments, 'means they live in a country that doesn't work for them anymore.' They want change. And there's a flip side, he cynically suggests: Some Canadians are content with the status quo, because it benefits them. They bought houses decades ago that are worth 20 times what they paid for them. It's in their interest, he argues, to encourage unsustainable levels of immigrants to support existing social programs and to constrain investment in the infrastructure needed to re-energize the Canadian economy.
Economist
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Economist
Australia is no longer lucky
THE LANDSLIDE win on May 3rd for the Australian Labor Party, led by Anthony Albanese, the incumbent prime minister, was the party's best election performance since the second world war. It was also the worst faring ever for the main opposition, the (conservative) Liberal-led coalition. By May 8th, ten seats in the 150-seat House of Representatives remained undeclared. But Labor had won at least 90 seats; the coalition had bagged only 40 (see chart).
RNZ News
03-05-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Watch: Budgie smugglers, sausages and ballot papers - Australians head to the polls in Labor tipped election
Millions of Australians have been flocking to the polls today to vote in a federal election. Polls show that Labor is on track to pip the Liberal-led Coalition and be re-elected to government. While an increasing number of Australians have chosen to vote early this election, as many as 10 million are still expected to vote today. At Sydney's famous Bondi Beach, voters queued to vote in hot sunny conditions, with some even voting in their budgie smugglers or togs. Many were also partaking in the Australian tradition of a democracy sausage sizzle, although there were a few complaints from voters about the AU$6 price tag. Cost of living has been one of the key issues dominating the election campaign. Meanwhile, party leaders are continuing to campaign up to the last minute today when polls close at 8pm New Zealand time (NZT). Both Labor's Anthony Albanese and the Coalition's Peter Dutton have spent significant time in Melbourne today which has a number of key battleground seats in play. One factor also at play tonight will be the fortunes of the minor parties and independents, as some polls show Labor may need their support to form a majority government. A result can be expected around 12am (NZT). Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Alberta's Smith calls for reset with Ottawa after Carney victory
-- Alberta Premier Danielle Smith responded to Prime Minister Mark Carney and the Liberals' election win with a call for 'meaningful action' from Ottawa and a warning that Alberta will no longer accept federal interference in its economy. In a statement posted to X on Tuesday, Smith said her government would not allow 'the status quo to continue.' While she extended congratulations to Carney, Smith used her message to make clear that frustrations in Alberta remain unresolved after another Liberal-led administration was returned. She urged the new prime minister to 'reset the relationship between Ottawa and Alberta' and cautioned that her province would explore new ways to assert its position within Confederation. Citing a 'decade's punitive taxation and anti-resource policies,' Smith accused the federal government of weakening national unity and obstructing Alberta's energy industry. 'Albertans are proud Canadians… but we will no longer tolerate having our industries threatened and our resources landlocked by Ottawa,' she wrote. Smith voiced strong praise for Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, calling him 'a true friend of Alberta' whose campaign had made empowering the province 'a cornerstone.' She said his proposals had helped shape the national debate and energize a movement for change. Looking ahead, Smith announced a special caucus meeting for this Friday, after which more details will be shared about Alberta's future positioning. She said the province would begin a process that allows Albertans to 'assess various options for strengthening and protecting' their interests. Related articles Alberta's Smith calls for reset with Ottawa after Carney victory Carney reaffirms campaign agenda, warns of U.S. pressure in victory speech Election Day: Carney, Poilievre battle for Canada's future
