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Manitoba Liberal leadership race
Tue, 2013-08-06 14:46
#1
Manitoba Liberal leadership race
Tue, 2013-08-06 15:27
#2
So, I was bored today and found myself suddenly remembering that the Manitoba Liberals are having a leadership race.
This was not a cure for boredom.
So far, only one candidate has put forward her name: Rana Bokhari, a young (35) lawyer:
She has already won the endorsement of... some boring old white guy whose name was being bandied about by followers of this sort of minutae: http://globalnews.ca/news/754559/manitoba-liberal-leadership-candidate-b...
She was at the U of M at the same time as me, but that's a big place and I stopped giving a crap about student politics around 2010 or 2011, so I don't recall anything about her aside from her name sounding vaguely familiar. Google shows that she was running the Manitoba Law Students Association for a while, and this: http://www.themanitoban.com/2012/02/manitoba-student-protestors-hit-the-...
On the same day, U of M law students gathered to protest Bill C-10, the conservative government’s omnibus crime bill.Rana Bokhari, president of the Manitoba Law Students’ Association (MLSA) explained that her council has passed a resolution to oppose Bill C-10, in solidarity with organizations such as the Canadian Bar Association and the Elizabeth Fry Society, who have actively been opposing the bill.
She explained that law students are in a very unique position, saying the bill will have “a lot of effect on our future and clients.
“MLSA is definitely not saying that the entire bill needs to be ignored, it is just saying that there are parts of the bill that are not based on social science, criminology and legal research,” Bokhari said.
So, at least on this issue, she's to the left of Andrew Swan and the NDP. Not that that's much of an accomplishment considering they lined up with the Harper government, but it's something.
Another possible entrant is writer Dougald Lamont: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2013/06/20/mb-liberal-leade...
His big selling point seems to be that he's young (44). Which might not work when the other candidate is almost ten years younger. But, he threw out an interesting quote:
"Governments have been trying neo-conservative ideas for the past 30 years, and they were all supposed to make everyone richer, create prosperity for everyone. And that has not happened," he said.Lamont said the NDP have had 14 years to address inequality, especially income inequality.
"Manitobans need an alternative and need change and they shouldn't just have to ... say, 'Well, we don't want the PC's, so we're going to have to stick with the NDP who are tired out.'"
The only other name I've heard bandied about is Bob Axworthy, the brother of the (in?)famous Lloyd Axworthy, who managed a fairly strong second (over 30%) against PC leader Brian Pallister when he sought a seat in the Fort Whyte by-election.
The deadline is Sept. 26, and the leadership convention is Oct. 26
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I have my doubts that this leadership race will be of any consequence to Manitobans. Quite frankly, given the state and prospects of the Liberal Party in Manitoba, I'm amazed that anyone wants Jon Gerrard's job. But, who knows? The NDP has pulled some stupid moves recently, the government is getting a bit long in the tooth, and they could be vulnerable to being outflanked on the left. And, it might interesting to see how one of these younger candidates might try to get the party to break out beyond the old money River Heights crowd which is pretty much the last bastion of support for a party struggling for a reason to exist against an electorate polarized between the Conservatives and NDP.
Tue, 2013-08-06 16:07
#3
So, I was bored today and found myself suddenly remembering that the Manitoba Liberals are having a leadership race.
This was not a cure for boredom.
That's funny!
Wed, 2013-08-07 22:48
#4
The Analyst
Regan Wolfrom hasn't officially filled out his forms yet? Isn't disagreeable, whininess exactly what we need in leadership?!!
http://reganwolfrom.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/my-run-for-the-leadership-o...
Wed, 2013-08-21 15:59
#5
Still, there should be a lot more going on for the Liberals. What better time for them to try and gain momentum than to use their leadership race to capitalize on Trudeaumania?
I strongly suspect that we'll see something like what happened in Saskatchewan, where the Saskatchewan Greens overtook the Saskatchewan Liberals as the province's new third party. I'm actually convinced that the only reason the Manitoba Liberals finished ahead of the Greens last time around is because the Greens didn't run a full slate while the Liberals did.
Thu, 2013-08-22 09:28
#6
And the race is on
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/Lamont-to-run-for-provincial-Libe...
Dougald Lamont, a longtime Liberal communications specialist, became the second contender today in the leadership race for the provincial liberal party.
A press release stated Lamont handed in his papers today at the Manitoba Liberal Party headquarters at 635 Broadway in Winnipeg this morning.
He said he is running because he believes there is potential for the party to win more seats in the next provincial election, which is expected to occur in the spring of 2016.
"When I look at the options for Manitoba, I think the NDP is tired and worn out," Lamont said. "Manitoba needs a change. That doesn’t include a sharp right turn under (Progressive Conservative Leader) Brian Pallister."
...
However, the party appears to be benefiting from the decline in NDP support, according to a June poll by Probe Research.
The poll said 17 per cent of Manitobans surveyed said they would vote Liberal.
The numbers don't yet suggest a Liberal surge similar to the one orchestrated by leader Sharon Carstairs in 1988. That year the party won 20 seats.
Tue, 2013-09-10 10:41
#7
Oh look, another tumbleweed!
Lloyd's brother hasn't decided yet
Axworthy, who has mused publicly for months about a leadership bid, sent an email to family and friends last week. The email alludes to past financial troubles, including bankruptcy, and asks for help."It is true I've had some hard lessons in my life, but I've gotten back up every time I've been knocked down," the email, obtained by The Canadian Press, states.
"Those lessons ... have helped me become the person I am today and has led me to the place I feel I should be. I would like to continue to advance my efforts by running for leadership of the Liberal party.
"To support me in the fight for new direction in Manitoba, I am asking for a small donation of $5 to help fund my campaign."
...
Axworthy said he is taking his time before making the decision on whether to officially enter the race.
"That letter is another kind of final step in saying 'is this worth doing?"' Axworthy said in an interview.
We've got only two weeks before we see how what promises to be the least interesting event in Manitoba politics all year will shape up.
Sun, 2013-10-27 16:57
#8
And the winner is....
http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/liberals-have-a-new-leader-229427...
A Winnipeg lawyer and political neophyte will lead the Manitoba Liberal Party into the next general election, expected in the spring of 2016.Rana Bokhari stunned some observers Saturday with a first-ballot victory over businessman and author Dougald Lamont and longtime party insider and consultant Bob Axworthy. She succeeds Jon Gerrard, who had led the party for the past 15 years.
Bokhari, a first-generation Canadian who grew up on a farm near Anola, received support from 431 Liberals in the first round of balloting -- a razor-thin margin of victory as organizers had declared 430 votes were needed to win.
Lamont came in second with 285 votes, while Axworthy, brother of former federal Liberal cabinet minister Lloyd Axworthy, received just 131 votes.
Other things to note: Apparently the Manitoba Liberals only have a bit over 2000 members - and that is after a leadership campaign in which candidated signed up new members (Bokhari alone claims to have sold 600). The convention apparently had many empty seats.
On the one hand, this isn't much. I think the NDP had almost that many delegates at their last leadership convention. Despite them polling fairly well now, the Liberals don't seem to have a lot of actual members. They're going to need to do a lot of work if they're going to make any credible gains in the next election.
Wed, 2013-10-30 16:43
#9
Good for her. Maybe they need someone from outside the establishment to shake things up. Any word on whether Gerrard will resign his seat to give her a chance to enter the legislature through a by-election? Two years is an awfully long time to be leading the party from the gallery. That said, it's been done before - see Carstairs, Sharon and Hasselfield, Ginny. The question is: will she be a Sharon Carstairs or a Ginny Hasselfield?
Wed, 2013-10-30 17:29
#10
Good for her. Maybe they need someone from outside the establishment to shake things up. Any word on whether Gerrard will resign his seat to give her a chance to enter the legislature through a by-election? Two years is an awfully long time to be leading the party from the gallery. That said, it's been done before - see Carstairs, Sharon and Hasselfield, Ginny. The question is: will she be a Sharon Carstairs or a Ginny Hasselfield?
What I've heard from the media coverage so far, he's planning to stay on as an MLA and it sounds like he is likely to run again in River Heights in 2015.
Which, of course, begs the question of where Bokhari will run. She'd be facing an uphill battle, but I'd figure her best bet would be to find a south-end-ish Winnipeg riding with a lot of University students. Or, perhaps up in Kevin Lamoreaux's old stomping grounds - the Maples and that area is pretty diverse, has a lot of immigrants, and the Liberals seems to have done relatively wll there recently. Or, she could try to get on wherever if a by-election comes up - Bob Axworthy did fairly well in the Fort Whyte by-election recently.
And, in other news, let the circular firing squad begin!
Soon after Rana Bokhari was elected on the first ballot of Saturday’s convention, some supporters of the other two candidates — Bob Axworthy and Dougald Lamont — made their feelings known.
“MB Liberals lost their soul today,” read a Facebook post from the account of Jamie Michie-Bowles, Axworthy’s campaign manager, shortly after the results were announced.
“Disappointing day for provincial Liberals. Think a few … memberships will be cancelled,” read another post from the same account.
...
“I face the fact that one specific demographic voted today,” reads a Facebook posting from Michie-Bowles’s account. The comment was quickly criticized.
“Did you even look at the stage full of Rana’s volunteers,” David Koroma, a Bokhari campaign manager, responded. “One demographic? That’s just offensive and ridiculous.”
I must admit, it's funnier when it's not the left doing it.