Canadians voted last night, and as had been expected by many, no single party put forward a platform that the majority of voters were happy with.
The result of the general disillusion of voters was a minority government led by the Liberals; again, not an unexpected result.
If one were to believe the ridiculous rhetoric of social media, last night’s result was a death knell for the country. That will not be the case. Canada is made of sterner stuff than that, but the result was certainly one which will send a shudder to the foundation of the country.
The result is clearly not popular across most of Western Canada which went strongly Progressive Conservative, minus swaths of territory in Manitoba and British Columbia.
There are those on social media already reacting like spoiled children wanting to take their ball and go home when losing a game, expounding upon the idea of a Republic of Western Canada. That is a short-sighted reaction to be sure, and one that flies against the basic tenants of a democracy; namely, that you don’t always get the vote result individuals want.
Of course, the return to significance of the Bloc in Quebec capturing 32 seats does raise the ghost of separation in that province as well. In this case, the party’s return is likely more about PC leader Andrew Scheer’s inability to capture the imagination of Quebec voters as a viable option for those disgruntled with Justin Trudeau and his Liberals.
In this election, no party was going to make the majority happy. The Liberals and PCs were both the choice of only one-third of voters across the country; the remaining third casting votes elsewhere. In a multi-party system, it is not unusual to have the majority of voter’s casting votes for parties other than those holding power. The day after, however, the results do sting the ardent supporters of the losing party.
The minority government is likely a positive in terms of popular support for the government. The Liberals will almost certainly be bolstered by the New Democrats who captured nearly 16 per cent of the popular vote which would suggest near 50 per cent support of the coalition.
What is clearly required now is a need for Canada to exhale following a divisive campaign, and then to get down to the job of rebuilding a greater sense of country coast-to-coast.
There are messages in the result the Liberal party needs to pay attention to, starting with the disillusionment felt across much of Western Canada and to a lesser extent in Quebec generally a bastion of Liberal support.
Clearly the Liberal platform did not resonate in the west, and it will require some adjustment if the party wants to recapture moderate voters out here. Whether they can do that in a minority government where policies are often tempered by the requirements of the coalition will be the story to watch play out in the coming months.
