Poilievre's Conservative Party embracing language of mainstream conspiracy theories
Tory leader's summer stump speeches include ramped-up rhetoric about the World Economic Forum
It is, some experts suggest, another sign that some conspiracy theories are moving from the fringes of the internet to mainstream thinking, as people's distrust of government grows.
In speeches to Conservative supporters across Canada, Poilievre has promised that none of his ministers will attend the international organization's conferences, including the annual meeting typically held in Davos, Switzerland.
"It's far past time we rejected the globalist Davos elites and bring home the common sense of the common people," said a Saturday fundraising email.
The Conservative Party also recently sent out mailers with a poll asking people to tell Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who they think the prime minister should stand with: working Canadians or the World Economic Forum.
The wording implies Trudeau's cabinet is beholden to the latter.
Poilievre did not agree to an interview on the matter. His spokesperson instead pointed The Canadian Press to a clip of him at a rally in Penticton, B.C., in July, expressing concerns over the government invading people's personal privacy and financial decisions.
"There will be no mandatory digital ID in this country, and I will ban all of my ministers and top government officials from any involvement in the World Economic Forum," Poilievre said, chuckling as he received lengthy applause for the remark.
A
group of anti-World Economic Forum protesters are seen outside the
Hamilton conference centre where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his
cabinet met in January 2023. (Submitted by Zimo Wang)Ottawa's history with the WEF
Canada has long participated in WEF events. Former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper and his cabinet ministers attended the summit regularly. Trudeau attended in person in 2016 and 2018, and his ministers have attended as well. Liberal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland went to the most recent annual summit in January.
On digital IDs, the federal government has been looking at technology to create a national digital identification document to help people access government services. It has not been promoted as something that will become mandatory.
Last winter, a conspiracy theory circulating on social media suggested Trudeau was going to require provinces to sign on to digital ID systems for their residents in order to get billions in new health-care funding. That conspiracy was also debunked.
Duane Bratt, a political science professor at Mount Royal University in Calgary, said some people have long embraced conspiracies, but now they have moved into mainstream politics.
"The big shift that we have seen is that it is now being promoted by someone who could be prime minister," said Bratt.
Poilievre peddled the WEF control claims during the Conservative leadership race in 2022, and it has emerged again as a regular talking point following the federal byelection in southern Manitoba, said Bratt.
In
speeches to Conservative supporters across Canada, Poilievre has
promised that none of his ministers will attend the WEF's conferences,
including the annual meeting typically held in Davos, Switzerland. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)
In that contest in Portage–Lisgar, the Conservatives were looking to beat back a growing challenge from the People's Party of Canada. Maxime Bernier, the leader of that party who has long accused the WEF of having a globalist agenda, ran in the byelection.
The Conservatives attacked him for having attended the Davos summit when he was Harper's foreign affairs minister in 2008.
Bratt said Poilievre's embrace of conspiracy theories could be because he's attempting to steal back votes from the PPC.
"The question is does he really believe it or is he just pandering to people, and will he pivot again if he becomes prime minister," Bratt said.
Pandemic as a trigger
Kawser Ahmed, a politics professor at the University of Winnipeg with a research specialty in conspiracy theories, said the number and uptake of conspiracy theories began to grow after the 2016 presidential election in the United States, aided by social media and encrypted messaging apps.
But Ahmed said the biggest trigger was the COVID-19 pandemic.
"At that time, whatever decisions government took, it was explained to some corner of our citizens — in line with conspiracy theories — that the government is controlling you, the government has asked to give you a vaccine, the government has asked not to go out and so forth," said Ahmed.
It's a sentiment politicians have learned to pick up on, and Bratt believes that many people aren't willing to reject a politician just because they peddle false claims or conspiracies.
"There's a lot of ideas that are now moving into the mainstream that are simply not supported by science, evidence or facts," he said. "But it doesn't matter and some of those politicians have been elected, like the current premier of Alberta."
United Conservative Party Premier Danielle Smith has said she is in lockstep with Poilievre, and will having nothing to do with the World Economic Forum.
Populism has driven politicians to feed into conspiracy theories because they need votes, and fear is a great motivator, said Ahmed. They get less interest peddling for votes using their record.
"It's very easy to appeal to people that something is a threat," he said. "For example, your identity, your livelihood, your religious values."
Ahmed said it is affecting our democracy, pitting groups against each other, creating suspicion and harming national security by spreading misinformation that eventually affects policy.
David Amos
When do conspiracy theories turn into irrefutable facts?
Allan Hilroy
Reply to David Amos
Takes about 6 months on average
Roger Pritchet
Reply to David Amos
When MSM finally prints them.
Dave Burns
Reply to David Amos
When there’s actual evidence and not just allegations
David Amos
Reply to Dave Burns
Check my work
| https://davidraymondamos3.blogspot.com/2022/10/poilievre-reveals-parliamentary-critics.html | |
Thursday, 13 October 2022Poilievre reveals parliamentary critics for Conservative party | |
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---------- Original message ---------- https://davidraymondamos3. Thursday, 13 October 2022
Poilievre reveals parliamentary critics for Conservative party5,072 views Oct 12, 2022  59 Comments---------- Original message ---------- From: "Poilievre, Pierre - M.P." <pierre.poilievre@parl.gc.ca> Date: Wed, 2 Mar 2022 06:17:40 +0000 Subject: I am 100% against the use of the Emergencies Act To: Thank you for your message. I appreciate the chance to hear your thoughts and concerns. I am 100% against the use of the Emergencies Act. You can click the image to watch my speech on the Emergencies Act or you can read the transcript below. [cid:1721f8f1-5f12-4beb-afe8- Sincerely, Pierre Poilievre P.C., M.P. Carleton Shadow Minister of Finance SK [PoilievrePierre_CPC]<http:// <https://www.facebook.com/ <https://twitter.com/#!/ http://www.pierremp.ca Reject the Emergencies Act February 20, 2022 https://www.youtube.com/watch? Madam Speaker, there is indeed an emergency in this country. Indeed, there are a series of emergencies. There is the emergency of the family whose 14-year-old daughter has attempted suicide after two years of isolation from sports, social interaction and other healthy activities that sustain a happy and heartful mind. There is the emergency of the federal public servant who, for unrecognized medical reasons, cannot get vaccinated and is now deprived of an income and a job. There is the emergency of the trucker who was hailed as a hero while driving our goods and services across international borders unvaccinated for over two years, who suddenly was declared a public health threat and deprived of his job as well. There is the emergency of the 32-year-old still living in his mom's basement, because under the pretext of COVID, the government printed so much money that it now costs $836,000 for the average house. There is the emergency of the single mother trembling as she walks down the grocery aisle because she cannot afford a basket of affordable goods, because the government has inflated her cost of living. There is the emergency created by the regulatory gatekeepers who keep people in poverty by blockading first nations people from the ability to develop their own resources and blockading immigrants from the ability to work in the very professions for which they are trained and qualified. These are the emergencies we should be addressing, but instead, the Prime Minister has created a new emergency. What is his motivation? Of course, it is to divide and conquer. How did this all start? Let us remember that the Prime Minister suddenly imposed a brand new vaccine mandate on the very truckers who had been free to travel across borders without a vaccine, and he did it at a time when provinces and countries around the world were removing vaccine mandates. He did it to a group of people who are by far the least likely to transmit a virus because they work and sleep all by themselves 22 hours a day. Media asked his health minister and his chief medical officer for evidence supporting the decision. Neither had any. In fact, the medical officer said it was time to return to normalcy, yet the Prime Minister, in spite of all these facts, brought in this new mandate to deprive people of their living, because he knew that it would spark in them a sense of desperation. If he could deprive them of their incomes, they would be so desperate that they would have to rise up and protest, and then he could further demonize them, call them names, attack their motives, belittle them and dehumanize them in order to galvanize the majority against the minority. This must be the political opportunity his Deputy Prime Minister spoke about when she described what COVID represented to the government. The Liberals have attempted to amplify and take advantage of every pain, every fear and every tragedy that has struck throughout this pandemic in order to divide one person against another and replace the people's freedom with the government's power. At the beginning of the pandemic, it started immediately. The government attempted to ram through a law that would have given it the power to raise any tax to any level for any reason without a vote in Parliament. It tried to pass Bill C-10 to strip away free speech online. Thankfully, Conservatives blocked it from doing so. The Prime Minister's authorities have said they want to track Canadian cell phones for the next five years. Now this, the Emergencies Act, is the latest and greatest example of attacks on our freedom. Ostensibly, it was meant to stop blockades, which had already ended before he even brought forward this legislation. In Alberta, in Manitoba, and at the Ambassador Bridge, those blockades were ended peacefully, in some cases with protesters hugging the police officers and bringing the matters to a successful close so that goods and services could resume. Instead, in that context, the Prime Minister brought in a law that not even Jean Chrétien brought in after 9/11 killed dozens of Canadians in a terrorist attack, that not even former prime minister Harper brought in when a terrorist murdered a Canadian soldier at the war monument and came running into Centre Block spraying bullets in all directions, and that not even the current Prime Minister brought in when blockades by first nations were standing in the way of those who were attempting to build the Coastal GasLink pipeline. For the first time in this law's three-decade history, the Prime Minister brings it in to address what he says was a protest in front of Parliament Hill. Ironically, this power goes beyond any of the protests and/or blockades the Prime Minister claims to want to address. For example, it would allow governments and banks to seize people's bank accounts and money for donating to the wrong political cause. One journalist asked the justice minister if small sums donated, for example, to support an end to vaccine mandates could get someone's bank account frozen. The minister did not deny it. Instead, he said that people who make donations of that kind should be very worried. To freeze people's bank accounts is not just an attack on their finances but on their personal security. If their bank accounts are frozen, they cannot buy food, they cannot buy fuel, they cannot pay their children's daycare fees and, under this law, they can face this personal attack without being charged with a single, solitary crime. The Prime Minister says that this is time-limited, yet his own finance minister said she wants some of the tools to be permanent. He said it will be geographically targeted, yet his own parliamentary secretary for justice said that “the act technically applies to all of Canada”. The rules apply everywhere and indefinitely. Finally, there is nothing in the act that limits the kinds of financial actions that could lead to people's accounts being frozen, and if they are frozen unjustifiably, the act specifically bans people from suing either the bank or the government for that unjustifiable treatment, opening the door for people who have nothing whatsoever to do with either the blockades or the protest having their bank accounts frozen without cause. The Prime Minister says he wants to do this to remove the blockades, blockades that have already been removed. He says he needs these unprecedented powers in order to bring our country's order back to the pre-protest period, although across this country that has already occurred. I say to the House that I oppose this unjustifiable power grab and, as prime minister of Canada, I will ensure that no such abuse of power ever happens again. However, I say that we should end some of these blockades. Madame Speaker, we can remove all of the blockades. Let us remove the mandates and restrictions that are blocking people's livelihoods today. Let us end the blockades on freedom of speech that the government is trying to erect with its online censorship bill. Let us end the regulatory blockades so that builders can provide affordable homes, first nations can develop their economies and escape poverty, and newcomers can actually work in the professions for which they were trained. Let us remove the inflationary taxes, deficits, and money printing so that people's wages can again buy them homes, food and fuel, let us remove that blockade. Let us get people back in control of their lives by making Canada the freest place on earth: free to speak, free to think, free to work, free to worship, free to own a home and build one's own destiny. Let us bind up the nation's wounds with compassion and respect and unite our country for freedom. ---------- Original message ---------- From: "Poilievre, Pierre - Assistant 1" <pierre.poilievre.a1@parl.gc. Date: Tue, 16 Nov 2021 16:49:00 +0000 Subject: Automatic reply: Hey Zach Dubinsky I just called again Correct? BTW I called Jake Stewart too To: David Amos <david.raymond.amos333@gmail. Please note, this email address is no longer monitored. Please contact pierre.poilievre@parl.gc.ca or 613-992-2772. Thank you. ---------- Original message ---------- From: pierre.poilievre.a1@parl.gc.ca Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2019 17:35:08 +0000 Subject: Automatic reply: KPMG To: motomaniac333@gmail.com Thank you for your email. I am out of the office. Please contact Jeremy at pierre.poilievre.a4@parl.gc.ca or call 613-992-2772. Manjit ---------- Original message ---------- From: pierre.poilievre.a1@parl.gc.ca Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2018 19:18:56 +0000 Subject: Automatic reply: ATTN Michael Snaauw I called you and a lot of your pals today To: motomaniac333@gmail.com Thank you for your email. I will be out of the office from August 1-August 17th. If this is an urgent matter, please call 613-992-2772 or email pierre.poilievre.a2@parl.gc.ca Manjit ---------- Original message ---------- From: pierre.poilievre.a1@parl.gc.ca Date: Sun, 29 Jan 2017 09:39:24 +0000 Subject: Automatic reply: A little Deja Vu for Rob Sweet and Pierre Poilievre et al To: motomaniac333@gmail.com Thank you for your email. Please note, I am out of the office and have no access to this email. If this is a scheduling matter, please contact Dan White or Daniel Dickin at 613-992-2772 or pierre.poilievre@parl.gc.ca. If your email is regarding a constituency matter, please contact JP Mitton at 613-692-3331 or pierre.poilievre.a3@parl.gc.ca Manjit Athwal https://www.cbc.ca/news/ Poilievre unveils critics list, pits Alberta MP Jasraj Singh Hallan against Chrystia Freeland New Conservative leader choose not to name Rempel Garner, Fast or O'Toole to critic roles Peter Zimonjic, Catherine Cullen · CBC News · Posted: Oct 12, 2022 12:07 PM ET Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will face off in the House of Commons against Alberta Conservative MP Jasraj Singh Hallan, who has been named his party's new finance critic. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press) Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has released his list of parliamentary critics. He's chosen Alberta Conservative MP Jasraj Singh Hallan as the party's new finance critic, pitting him against Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland. Poilievre has appointed 51 critics and another 20 associate critics. But the list leaves out some very high-profile Conservatives, such as MP Ed Fast — who supported former Quebec premier Jean Charest for the leadership — and Michelle Rempel Garner, who served as leadership campaign co-chair for Patrick Brown. Former Conservative leader Erin O'Toole told the National Post last month that he did not want a critic role because he did not want to be a distraction to the team. He was left off the list. Poilievre named Quebec Conservative MP Gérard Deltell as the party's environment critic. Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault is also from Quebec. Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities Dominic LeBlanc will face off against Ontario MP, former leadership candidate and prominent social conservative Leslyn Lewis, who becomes the new infrastructure and communities critic. Rob Moore, MP for the New Brunswick riding of Fundy Royal, has been named the new justice critic, pitting him against Justice Minister and Attorney General David Lametti. Defence Minister Anita Anand will do battle with new defence critic MP James Bezan. Analysis Let's get 'real': Trudeau, Poilievre and the big debate over what matters Analysis In Poilievre, Liberals face a leader who gets under his opponents' skin Poilievre unveils House of Commons leadership team that includes two LGBT MPs Poilievre, who pledged during his leadership campaign to end vaccine mandates, has created a new position of civil liberties critic for Ontario MP Marilyn Gladu. Last year, Gladu led the formation of a "civil liberties caucus" of Conservative MPs that took on concerns about vaccination and opposed mandates. Gladu told CBC News that her new role, which does not have a corresponding cabinet position, was Poilievre's idea. "This is an expression that he's going to be vigilant about protecting people's freedom," she said, noting her new role also includes looking at issues like digital privacy and censorship. The complete Conservative critic list Digital Government — Ben Lobb Agriculture, Agri-Food and Food Security — John Barlow Canadian Heritage — Rachael Thomas Crown-Indigenous Relations — Jamie Schmale Finance and Middle Class Prosperity — Jasraj Singh Hallan Employment, Future Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion — Tracy Gray Environment and Climate Change — Gérard Deltell Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault (left) will have to contend with Quebec Conservative MP Gérard Deltell in the House of Commons. (Patrick Doyle/The Canadian Press, Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press) Families, Children and Social Development — Michelle Ferreri Federal Economic Development Agency for Eastern, Central and Southern Ontario — Lianne Rood Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard — Clifford Small Foreign Affairs — Michael Chong Health — Stephen Ellis Housing and Diversity and Inclusion — Scott Aitchison High-profile Conservative MPs Ed Fast, Michelle Rempel Garner and former Conservative leader Erin O'Toole were left off the list of critics. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press, Justin Tang/The Canadian Press) Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship — Tom Kmiec Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario (Associate, Crown-Indigenous Relations) — Eric Melillo Innovation, Science and Industry — Rick Perkins International Development — Garnett Genuis International Trade — Kyle Seeback Small Business Recovery and Growth — Brad Vis Supply Chain Issues — Matt Jeneroux Rob Moore, Conservative MP for the New Brunswick riding of Fundy Royal, will face off against Justice Minister and Attorney General David Lametti. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press, Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press) Red Tape Reduction — Scot Davidson Justice and Attorney General of Canada — Rob Moore Civil Liberties — Marilyn Gladu Mental Health and Suicide Prevention — Todd Doherty Addictions — Laila Goodridge Northern Affairs and Arctic Sovereignty; Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency — Bob Zimmer Prairie Economic Development (Advisor to the Leader, Economy) — Pat Kelly Pacific Economic Development — Tako van Popta Sport; Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec — Richard Martel National Defence — James Bezan Defence Minister Anita Anand (right) will do battle with new defence critic James Bezan, the Conservative MP for the Manitoba riding of Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press, Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press) National Revenue — Adam Chambers Natural Resources — Shannon Stubbs Official Languages — Joel Godin Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency — Jake Stewart Public Safety — Raquel Dancho Public Services and Procurement — Kelly Block Emergency Preparedness — Dane Lloyd Rural Economic Development & Connectivity — Dan Mazier Seniors — Anna Roberts Tourism — Tony Baldinelli Transport —Mark Strahl Treasury Board — Stephanie Kusie Veterans Affairs — Blake Richards Women and Gender Equality and Youth — Karen Vecchio Ethics and Accountable Government — Michael Barrett Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities Dominic LeBlanc [right] will face off against Ontario Conservative MP Leslyn Lewis. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press) Infrastructure and Communities — Leslyn Lewis Labour — Chris Lewis Indigenous Services — Gary Vidal Pan-Canadian Trade and Competition — Ryan Williams Hunting, Fishing and Conservation —Blaine Calkins Democratic Reform — Michael Cooper Associate critics Associate Finance and Middle Class Prosperity (Tax Reform) — Philip Lawrence Associate Finance and Middle Class Prosperity (Affordable Government) — Marty Morantz Associate Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard (Recreational and West Coast) — Mel Arnold Associate National Defence (Recruitment and Retention) — Shelby Kramp-Neuman Associate Natural Resources (Nuclear) — Corey Tochor Associate Women and Gender Equality and Youth — Dominique Vien Associate Agriculture — Richard Lehoux Associate Agriculture —Warren Steinley Associate Canadian Heritage — Kevin Waugh Associate Environment and Climate Change — Robert Kitchen Associate Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship —Brad Redekopp Associate Indigenous Services — Larry Brock Associate Labour — Rosemarie Falk Associate Ethics and Accountable Government — Jacques Gourde Associate Veterans Affairs — Fraser Tolmie Associate Transport — Dan Muys Associate Public Safety — Doug Shipley Associate Official Languages — Bernard Généreux Associate International Trade (Adviser to the Leader, Canada/U.S. Relations) — Randy Hoback Associate Justice and Attorney General — Frank Caputo Chair, Public Accounts — John Williamson Chair, Government Operations and Estimates — Kelly McCauley Chair, Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics — John Brassard House leadership team Last month, Poilievre unveiled his Commons leadership team — a nine-member group that includes two LGBT MPs and one of the few persons of colour in the Conservative caucus. Ontario MP Melissa Lantsman, a lesbian, and Alberta MP Tim Uppal, who is South Asian, now serve as Poilievre's deputy leaders. Both supported him in the leadership race. Since her election last year, Lantsman, a former political staffer, lobbyist and CBC commentator, has been a fierce critic of the government's handling of the COVID-19 file. Uppal, who represents Edmonton in the Commons, served as minister of state for democratic reform and later as minister of state for multiculturalism in former prime minister Stephen Harper's government. Former Conservative leader Andrew Scheer, who was also a strong supporter of Poilievre during the leadership contest, was named opposition House leader. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Peter Zimonjic Senior writer Peter Zimonjic is a senior writer for CBC News. He has worked as a reporter and columnist in London, England, for the Daily Mail, Sunday Times and Daily Telegraph and in Canada for Sun Media and the Ottawa Citizen. He is the author of Into The Darkness: An Account of 7/7, published by Random House. CBC's Journalistic Standards and Practices Related Stories Analysis Let's get 'real': Trudeau, Poilievre and the big debate over what matters Analysis In Poilievre, Liberals face a leader who gets under his opponents' skin Poilievre unveils House of Commons leadership team that includes two LGBT MPs External Links Erin O’Toole says he could have beaten Justin Trudeau if it weren’t for COVID
"Polling analyst Éric Grenier, the author of TheWrit.ca, says the timing of the campaign makes sense. "Usually when there is a new leader in place and Canadians don't know a lot about them, there is an attempt to try to make them seem more like a likable person," he said."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISU5fkIe5ZY&ab_channel=%C3%89ricGrenier
The Writ Podcast - Ep. #104: Trudeau does the shuffle
1.86K subscribers
Stephanie Levitz and Aaron Wherry on what the cabinet shuffle means.
https://www.thewrit.ca/
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau didn’t just shuffle his cabinet — he
overhauled it, replacing seven ministers and changing the roles of most
of the others.
A simple refresh ahead of the next election or an admission that things
weren’t working?
To discuss what it all means, I’m joined this week by Stephanie Levitz
of the Toronto Star and the CBC’s Aaron Wherry.
https://www.thewrit.ca/p/the-weekly-writ-for-aug-9-conservatives
The Weekly Writ for Aug. 9: Conservatives gaining in the right placesPlus, PCs win big in Nova Scotia byelection, the riding to watch tomorrow night in Saskatchewan and Ernest Manning's first victory.
The polls have been good for Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives this summer, and they’ve gotten better in places where the Conservatives need to make gains in the next election. Case in point: how things have shifted in the Léger and Abacus Data polls since last year. We’ll focus on polls conducted in July 2022 and July 2023. Last July, Léger gave the Liberals a lead of four points across the country. Abacus had the Conservatives ahead by five. Average those out, and it was effectively a tie. The NDP trailed in third with 19-21% support. This July, Léger had the Conservatives ahead by nine points, while Abacus put the Conservatives ahead by 10. The NDP trailed with 17-18%. On average, this suggests the Conservatives gained six points, with the Liberals down three and the NDP down 2.5. With the exception of the Prairies, where the Conservatives dropped an average of one point between these two sets of polls, the party is up everywhere. The biggest gains have come in Atlantic Canada (+9.5), British Columbia (+8.5) and Ontario (+7). That’s just about the best scenario the party could hope for when it comes to picking up new seats. Growth in Quebec (+4.5) and Alberta (+5) has been more modest, but still good. That growth hasn’t come from every party equally. The Liberals have plummeted 13 points in Atlantic Canada. They are down 6.5 points in Alberta and 5.5 points in the Prairies. But they’ve only lost 2.5 points in B.C., two points in Ontario and 1.5 points in Quebec. It’s because the Liberals are holding on in the three biggest provinces that the Conservatives are being kept from reaching the majority government threshold. The Bloc Québécois has been holding steady at around 31% to 32%, matching their results in the last two elections. Apparently, the Bloc has its vote and it isn’t budging. The New Democrats haven’t seen their support move by more than a point in either direction in Alberta, Quebec or Atlantic Canada — all regions where their seat holdings and prospects are minimal. But they are down 5.5 points in both British Columbia and the Prairies, as well as 4.5 points in Ontario. So, it certainly seems that the Conservatives are taking from both parties. As I laid out in yesterday’s analysis, it does matter where that new support is coming from, and there are some signs that some of it is coming from areas where the Conservatives already hold all the seats. Surges in rural Ontario, the B.C. Interior or the parts of the Maritimes that are already blue won’t help in the seat count. But there’s undoubtedly enough spillover here to put the Conservatives in a solid minority government position. We’ll see if they can tip over into majority territory. Before getting to today’s Weekly Writ, don’t forget to join me and Philippe J. Fournier tomorrow night for our livestream of the Saskatchewan byelection results. It starts at 10 PM ET / 8 PM CT on Thursday and you’ll find the stream here: These are some interesting contests, with two urban seats being targeted by the Saskatchewan New Democrats and one rural seat where the governing Saskatchewan Party is trying to tamp down support for rivals to its right. If you missed it last week, check out my discussion with Adam Hunter in the most recent episode of The Writ Podcast to get caught up. Alright, now to what is in this week’s instalment of the Weekly Writ:
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