It’s a really bad time to be red. In the United States, the Republicans were dealt a defeat in both the presidential race and Congress. And in Canada, the Liberal party is reeling off another election defeat, seriously lacking in resources, and leaderless.
The October 14 elections saw the Liberals lose even more ridings, barely avoiding the majority Conservative government that Stephen Harper so desperately wants.
Stéphane Dion was trounced in opinion polls across the country, and stepped down as Liberal party leader soon after the elections. And that’s where the party finds itself now. The question is, how can they fix it?
The first step to re-energize a political party is to find a new leader. While Dion’s early appointment caused some excitement in the party as a new French Canadian candidate in the mold of Jean Chrétian, he faltered in national opinion as the election wore on.
What’s needed is a candidate that can appeal to a wider national audience. But they can barely afford to find one. CBC reported last month that many members of the Liberal party are stressing that only a few candidates should run, because the party doesn’t have the money or the resources for any more than that.
Apparently the Liberals were so low on funds that even an inter-party campaign would stress their reserves. That suggests that the party is in pretty bad shape.
Luckily for the Liberals, it doesn’t seem a lot of people want the job anyways. Former deputy Prime Minister John Manley announced he wouldn’t be running early in November. He told reporters that he just didn’t have “a burning ambition” for the race. Another top candidate, former New Brunswick premier Frank McKenna, dropped out before him, and most recently Martha Hall Findlay, another Liberal star from the last election, did the same. It’s hard to blame them for not wanting to jump on a sinking ship.
As of right now, there are three candidates for the Liberal Leadership. Michael Ignatieff, the former Harvard professor who lost out to Dion last time, Bob Rae, the former Ontario premier who placed third in the last election, and New Brunswick MP Dominic LeBlanc. It’s a very small group, and the race starts soon. But are any of these candidates going to make a difference?
Generally, the next Liberal leader needs a few qualities. For one, he or she will need to better time their platforms. That’s not just the leader’s fault, but Dion’s ambitious environmental platform, with its introduction of new carbon taxes, was not going to be popular when the economy was in crisis. The next leader is going to have to force his party to adapt a lot faster.
Secondly, he or she needs to be more likable across the country. The media was hard on Dion, but he just wasn’t resonating with voters.
Third, he or she needs to re-organize the party from the ground up. There’s no denying the Liberals are in bad shape, and they need to address each individual riding to start pulling some back. Fourth, they need to emphasize a change in the party. Change is a good mantra lately, and the new candidate needs to make it clear that the Liberal party is going to take a new direction.
Only time will tell if any of these three men have what it takes. More candidates may start jumping in and broaden the race. But the Liberals need to really take their time and make the right decision here. They literally can’t afford many more wrong choices.