(Ottawa) Liberal campaign co-chair Terry Duguid insisted Thursday that his caucus was united behind Justin Trudeau, even if the majority of Liberal elected officials remain silent on the Prime Minister’s political future.
The Canadian Press contacted dozens of Liberal MPs following the unexpected loss of a Toronto stronghold in a by-election earlier this week.
Most of them did not respond at all. Those who agreed to be quoted on the record, including Mr. Duguid, all stand by Mr. Trudeau.
PHOTO SEAN KILPATRICK, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Liberal MP Terry Duguid
Several Liberals responded only on the condition that they not be identified because they were not comfortable publicly criticizing their leader at this point. These MPs suggested it was time for Mr. Trudeau to go or, at the very least, that the caucus should meet soon to discuss how to move forward.
British Columbia MP Ken Hardie, who has said he wants Mr. Trudeau to stay, said the party should learn lessons from its defeat in Toronto—St. Paul’s and develop a “collaborative discussion”.
No meeting this summer
The by-election defeat came just days after parliamentarians left the House of Commons for the summer break and returned to their ridings for the summer.
If some deputies have met others in their own region since Monday, the others remain scattered across the country. The full caucus is not expected to meet again until a retreat in British Columbia just before the House of Commons returns in September.
PHOTO SPENCER COLBY, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Liberal Party of Canada House Leader Steven MacKinnon
House Leader Steven MacKinnon said there was no need to meet earlier. “I know that the Prime Minister listens very carefully to all my colleagues, the ministers and others. There are a lot of feedback mechanisms available to us and I think we will use them all,” MacKinnon said at a news conference Thursday, reiterating his support for Mr. Trudeau.
Mr. McKinnon said he was also in regular contact with his caucus colleagues as part of his role as House leader.
Mr Duguid, one of the few non-cabinet Liberal MPs to speak publicly since the byelection loss, revealed in an interview Thursday that there had been discussions about holding an early meeting of the national caucus, but no decision had been made.
He said he believes his colleagues are united in their desire for Trudeau to remain their leader. “He has massive support within our caucus,” Duguid said in an interview Thursday.
“The reality is that the Prime Minister is a great activist and a great communicator and I am delighted to run under his banner in 2025,” he added.
Frustrations
Several sitting Liberals credit Mr. Trudeau with improving their political success since he became leader in 2013. He successfully led them in the last three elections and returned the party to government, just one election after his worst electoral performance of 2011.
Mr. Duguid admits that many MPs are frustrated, but adds that these feelings stem from the difficulty in establishing connections with Canadians and not from concerns about the prime minister.
We talk to real people at the grocery store, at community events and feel people’s frustrations. We want to do something and we are doing something.
Terry Duguid, Liberal campaign co-chair
So far, the Liberals have confirmed 102 candidates for the upcoming election, and 100 of them are sitting MPs, representing about two-thirds of the 155-member caucus. Parker Lund, the party’s communications director, hopes to announce more in the coming weeks and months.
Toronto-area Liberal Shafqat Ali, who is nominated to run again in Brampton Centre, said he doesn’t feel like people are planning to jump ship. However, none of the nominated candidates is obliged to continue campaigning when the time comes.
He believes the Liberals needed to “rethink their strategy and reanalyze” to move forward.