Bob Rae as Liberal Leader?
September 25, 2006 · By Tom Cerber
Conservative Party strategists must be salivating at news that Bob Rae leads in popularity among Liberal Party members.
I haven’t seen any national polling data, but consider this:
- Bob Rae was NDP premier of Ontario and lots of Ontarians still harbor a visceral hatred for the man
- Bob Rae is backed by the Chretien gang, which means that Quebecers will hate him
Bob Rae seems unelectable in Ontario and Quebec. Considering the Liberals are by and large unelectable in the West (except for parts of the lower mainland and a smattering of seats in SK and MB), this means that the Liberals are primed to become the rump party of the Maramichi.
The Liberal party of the Maramachi. I like the sound of that.
Miramichi, though maybe Bernard Lord will run in Miramichi next time or Moncton.
Actually I’m quite worried about this development for the simple reason that history has shown pretty much every Liberal leader ends up as PM sometime. If Bob Rae ever becomes PM, I’m afraid it’ll be pretty much over for this little country of ours…
Jeff: Your comment underestimates the intelligence of the average Ontarian. They would never elect someone like Bob Rae. Oh wait, that’s what they said before they elected him NDP Premier. Never mind.
Although I agree with you, Tom, that Rae will face some electoral troubles in Ontario, I question whether the fact that Rae is backed by the Chretien team means doom in Quebec. Much of Quebeckers’ dislike of Chretien was personal, not about the team. Also, I think those of us who are political junkies tend to overestimate how much the average voter really pays attention to who’s staffing the backrooms of a leadership campaign. I suspect most Quebeckers won’t know and/or care who is behind Rae’s leadership bid.
Either way, though, almost every Liberal leadership contender has some downside for the Conservatives to exploit; I think you could argue Dion poses the biggest challenge were he to win.
[...] Billy Joe Bob questioned my optimism/pessimism that Bob Rae’s tenure as Ontario premier, and his Chretienista supporters, would make him unelectable in Ontario and Quebec. [...]