- Niki Ashton argued that Canada's grain supply should be considered a strategic resource in evaluating takeover bids for Viterra, and earned a glowing profile from Carol Goar.
- Nathan Cullen unveiled another caucus endorsement from Bruce Hyer (who also listed Thomas Mulcair and Paul Dewar as his ballot choices), while earning some fund-raising support from former B.C. Premier Glen Clark. And as pointed out by Dan, he also clarified that joint nominations aren't the only possibility on the table to beat the Cons:
Yahoo!: Are strategic alliances the only way to beat Stephen Harper and the Conservatives in the next election?- Thomas Mulcair won the support of Jack Harris. Bill Tierney profiled Thomas Mulcair as a successful political risk-taker, while Jooneed Khan suggested his Quebec establishment support should be seen as a kiss of death.
Cullen: No, it's just one of the better ways. It's a way that reflects progressive values and it reflects the NDP's experience.
- Alice discussed Martin Singh's candidacy on Power Play:
Meanwhile, Singh himself released a denial which directly recommends that his supporters list Mulcair 2nd on their ballots - and I'm curious to find out whether that will stick out like a sore thumb for the balance of the campaign, or whether other candidates will follow suit in trying to shape how their supporters fill out their preferential ballots.
- Brian Topp unveiled a rare endorsement switch, as MP Sana Hassainia retracted her earlier endorsement of Mulcair to join Topp's backers.
- Tariq Jeeroburkhan graded the leadership candidates - though with a few seemingly questionable conclusions (does anybody else rate Cullen at the back of the pack for media presence?). John Doyle's belated debate analysis featured plenty of praise for Nash. Alice Klein suggested that voters list Cullen 1st and Mulcair 2nd, while Jeremy Richler made his case for Mulcair. And Joanna Smith reported on the candidates' social media attention, with Cullen leading the way.
Greg,
ReplyDeleteI believe only Singh & Cullen will have the power to "steer" significant numbers of NDP voters to other candidates. That's because they're the only underdogs who've "reached out" to non-traditional NDP voters in any successful way.
Singh is especially remarkable. The guy could never count on traditional NDP voters to back him. So, more so than any other campaign, he looked outside the party for support. If you believe his claims, he's brought in "10, 000" new members based on his appeal to the Sikh community. He will have a strong influence especially on the eastern-Canadian Sikhs...who are brand new to the NDP.
Cullen has brought in a significant amount of soft Green/Liberal voters. But Cullen has made it explicitly clear on his website that he wishes his supporters to either leave secondary choices "blank" or choose based on ones own instincts. I think this instruction reflects his understanding that the campaigns supporters are a MIX of "new" NDP members (lib/greens who will leave secondaries blank)...and traditional NDP supporters (like myself who will rank candidates).
As for the rest of the candidates, I believe only Mulcair was successful in appealing outside the NDP family...especially in Quebec. But his "second choice" means nothing because he will be a finalist in the leadership contest.
P.S.
ReplyDeleteThe Singh/Chow model is something the party needs to consider in its future recruitment of ethnic voters.
Singh walked into the Sikh communities with a practical message that fused everyday business concerns with social democratic values. It appealed both to their pocket-books & inherent religiosity. Olivia Chow has been doing a relatively similar thing with the Chinese community for years now.
The party should consider prepping emissaries from currently sitting MP's (& even talented future prospects) to go into these various communities with a similar NDP message.
Why isn't Hoang Mai's pretty face greeting Vietnamese voters right across this country? Why isn't Rathika Sitsabaiesan's smile only known to the Sri-Lankan community in Scarborough instead of the wider South Indian community across Canada?
Where the Conservatives only have Jason Kenney's ugly mug, we have actual stars from these communities within our ranks. Let's unleash them with a message.
<span>P.S.
ReplyDeleteThe Singh/Chow model is something the party needs to consider in its future recruitment of ethnic voters.
Singh walked into the Sikh communities with a practical message that fused everyday business concerns with social democratic values. It appealed both to their pocket-books & inherent religiosity. Olivia Chow has been doing a relatively similar thing with the Chinese community for years now.
The party should consider prepping emissaries from currently sitting MP's (& even talented future prospects) to go into these various communities with a similar NDP message.
Why isn't Hoang Mai's pretty face greeting Vietnamese voters right across this country? Why is Rathika Sitsabaiesan's smile only known to the </span><span>Scarborough </span><span>Sri-Lankan community instead of the wider South-Indian-Canadian community?
Where the Conservatives only have Jason Kenney's ugly mug, we have actual stars from these communities within our ranks. Let's unleash them with a message.</span>
just posted to my FB page - ty Greg
ReplyDelete