Sun Media reporter Jessica Murphy, travelling with the Ignatieff tour, writes:
Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff says despite devastating public opinion polls that has pundits penning early obits for his party, he’s still “cheerful and confident” the 800,000 Grit supporters who stayed away from the polls in 2008 are ready to come back into “the big red tent.”
Underwhelmed by the weak national campaign headed by then-party leader Stephane Dion, these voters opted to stay home. Their absence cost the party a series of seats across the country.
But Ignatieff maintains some 18 months of work – including last summer’s Liberal Express bus tour – aimed at rebuilding the ground game will pay off May 2.
“I’ve covered a lot of ground,” he said Tuesday in French during an unwieldy news conference on a busy Vancouver street corner, where at one point his response to a question was drowned out by police sirens. “And what was I doing? Reaching out to the base. I was seeking out the base. We worked hard under the radar to mobilize our base with all the modern techniques. It’s a key question because on May 2, the deciding factor is who gets the vote out. And I’m confident the Liberal party will get the vote out. It’s crucial. That’s why I continue to be cheerful and confident.”
Later, he repeated in English: “I’ve spent a year-and-a-half on that bus. A year-and-a-half on open-mike town halls. What was that about? It was to get the base back. It’s to get the base back…The key thing on Monday will be who gets their vote out. Who shows up. We’ve got a formidable get-out-the-vote operation. That’s what those rooms are telling you — the vote, the base is back. We’ve had a whole operation under the radar for a very long time to get that base out.” Ignatieff has had decent turn out at most of his events – averaging around 600 party faithful (and the curious) in most cities.
Tags: elections, Liberals, Michael Ignatieff
A year and a half and the Liberal Party still doesn’t get it. Old and young Liberals will not vote for someone who was undemocraticly parachuted in as Leader.
This is was you get when you blatantly show a total disrespect for the voters of your own party.
Why doesn’t Iggy just go away, we haven’t talked to 1 Canadian that likes him and we have talked to many. Over half of our group are X-Liberals and we feel Iggy is worse than Dion. He is a mean and wild individual, shows no respect for Canadians and has no professionalism. He and Layton are both on power trips at Canadians expense. They caused this election which we could not afford, the turn out at the advance polls shows this. Give either one the power and Canada will be a total disaster. Harper was doing a good job and worked very hard. We say GO HARPER GO FOR A MAJORITY. Anything else we will be sorry, sad and poor.
From: Group of 130 with the majority being X-Lie-berals…
Liberals either have no shame or have a hell of lot of chutzpah.
Liberals brought Captain Adscam into the campaign now – incredible. Do Liberals have no shame? Conjures up not only memories of Adscam and the rape of Canadian taxpayers and many other bad things but also this in the words of another Liberal Prime Minister, Paul Martin, on Chretien’s infamous Red Book.
Referring to the Liberal Red Book, the basis for their successful 1993 election campaign: “Screw the Red Book… Don’t tell me what’s in the Red Book. I wrote the g-ddamned thing. And I know that it’s a lot of crap.” (Wilson-Smith, Greenspon, 1996)
[edit]
References
Wilson-Smith, Anthony; Greenspon, Edward (1996). Double Vision: The Inside Story of the Liberals in Power. Doubleday Canada
Ignatieff on oiling the Liberal vote machine, is he going to use alberta oil,that he will end up crippling with the cap and trade,he better use it sparingly,the money from it will be dwindling, and he should of been voted in as leader not anointed in,everyone else has to have a convention and their leaders voted in.liberal party needs to do a deep cleansing of their party and rebuild from the roots up,and leave the old boys out to pasture where they belong wants retired they should not be aloud back to meddle and interfere, they can cause more harm then good, they need to bring in fresh new young faces,new ideas and leave the old boys back room club out of it,only then will the succeed,and bring the people back in their direction.
hope springs eternal!!!! he needs to head back to the states. canada doesn’t want him!!nor the corrupt party he represents.
Canadians rejected Ignatieff’s books – They rejected his politics.
As Liberals contemplate their navel, as to where their disastrous campaign went wrong, and why their attempt to sell Ignatieff as a Prime Minister was a dismal failure it is rather obvious to Canadians.
Liberals have tried to convince Canadians that Ignatieff would be an excellent choice because he is a brilliant person who has authored 17 books.
The Canadians response is – can you name me one person who has even read one of them? Who cares?
Not very impressive, not very influential, not very motivating.
It’s good to see the tories targeting all the comment sites. However, I will decide who I like and don’t like and anyone but Harper looks just fine to me. The most scary situation I can imagine is Harper with a majority. Hopefully he looses again and crawls back under a rock somewhere and stays there.
Dawn: I doubt very much that you are an ex-Liberal considering you use the phrase “Lieberals”. I would rather you just say that you don’t like Ignatieff because you don’t like his policies. I doubt that you have ever met him either because he is not “mean and wild”. That description is quite original, considering Mr. Harper’s known character of being “mean”.
After the election in 1993, the liberals felt that they would be in power for ever as a result of the conservative party wipe out. And not only that. Who became the opposition in parliament. None other than the block. Now who is in charge of the country ? Quebec, of course. Why? Because it is in Quebec that the liberal power base is. No, then explain why most of our prime ministers come from Quebec. Then Mr. Harper comes along and changes all that. It has been a long haul for him. Congratulation Mr. Harper. Keep up the battle to save Canada.
Everybody but Mr. Harper: Hmmm, wonder what people say this. I mean, is Mr. Harper a nice warm and overly friendly guy??? no! Is he my friend?? no!
Did he do a great job with the economic recovery of this country? Yes, that he did. Let’s look at what the liberal and NDP promise? Spending, spending, spending, spending…..and how do they do that, one might ask? Well, by raising our taxes. the only thing saving this country from ruin at this point is a conservative majority.
I hope the liberal party goes the way of the dinosaur….
Michael
The youth are voting NDP. Harper isn’t going to be around for much longer so get used to it while you can. No majority this time.. No Conservatives next time.
Yeah you are an “ex Liberal” Dawn. Right Tell us another one