Prime Minister Mark Carney with MP Marilyn Gladu in Ottawa on Wednesday.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
Marilyn Gladu, a four-term Conservative MP who once sought leadership of that party, decamped Wednesday for the Liberal government, saying she could achieve more on that side of the aisle.
Her move means the Liberals now hold 171 seats in the House of Commons. In turn, they need only win one of Monday’s three scheduled by-elections to secure a technical majority.
Should they win two seats, they would have full control of the House of Commons.
Two of the by-elections are in Toronto-area ridings long-held by the Liberals.
Ms. Gladu announced her move through a letter to her constituents posted online and met with Prime Minister Mark Carney in Ottawa shortly afterwards.
“We need a global leader with a plan to make a more resilient Canada, a stronger Canada, a more self-reliant Canada for this critical moment,” she said as she stood next to Mr. Carney and AI Minister Evan Solomon.
“And that man is our prime minister, Mark Carney. He’s invited me to bring my experience, my talents and my views into the large Liberal tent and I think that will have a better effect inside than it will outside.”
Mr. Carney said Ms. Gladu had distinguished herself as a collaborative MP willing to work across party lines. He also noted her past experience as an engineer.
“We couldn’t be happier to have this expertise, experience and energy coming to our team,” he said.
Ms. Gladu was first elected as the MP for Sarnia–Lambton–Bkejwanong in 2015.
In last year’s election, she won just over 53 per cent of the vote.
Prime Minister Mark Carney joined allies in welcoming the two-week ceasefire in Iran and says Canada will work with allies to help get traffic moving in the Strait of Hormuz. But he says any peace plan or ceasefire must also include Lebanon.
The Canadian Press
In a letter to her constituents, she said the riding has always been a bellwether, meaning whoever was elected as MP was typically in government.
That changed when she won in 2015, she said, and while she has done her best in Opposition, she understands what constituents want.
“I know that you also want to see more direct support from your federal government at this crucial moment for our local and national economy, and I will be working relentlessly to advocate for the projects, priorities, and prosperity that our communities are counting on,” she wrote.
Ms. Gladu is the fifth MP to cross to the Liberals. Three others were Conservatives – Nova Scotia MP Chris d’Entremont, Ontario MP Michael Ma and Alberta MP Matt Jeneroux.
Lori Idlout, an NDP MP from Nunavut, has also joined the government benches.
But Ms. Gladu is also the fifth Conservative to leave the party since Pierre Poilievre became leader in 2022.
Quebec MP Alain Rayes quit to sit as an independent just days after Mr. Poilievre won the race.
Ms. Gladu had tried to run for leadership of the party in 2020, the contest ultimately won by Erin O’Toole.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she became a critic of vaccine mandates and pandemic-related restrictions. Her views on the subject once led to Mr. O’Toole chastising her publicly for spreading misinformation.
MPs’ frustration with Mr. O’Toole ultimately led to him being voted out by his own MPs, and Mr. Poilievre won the race to replace him.
He then appointed Ms. Gladu as the shadow minister for civil liberties.
Last week, Mr. Poilievre’s policy director sent a letter to shadow ministers asking for them to submit proof of what they’d accomplished in their roles since the last election.
That included their best-performing social media clips, examples of scandals or failures they’d dug up and any other material demonstrating they’d had an impact in with jobs.
A copy of the e-mail was obtained by The Globe and Mail.
The missive also asked whether the MPs wanted to stay in those jobs.
Ontario MP Marilyn Gladu is welcomed into the Liberal caucus by Prime Minister Mark Carney and Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon after crossing the floor from the Conservatives. She is the fifth MP, and fourth Conservative, to join the Liberals since October.
The Canadian Press
Ms. Gladu’s decision to leave for the Liberals stunned fellow-Conservatives; as recently as late March, Ms. Gladu had accused the Liberals of not caring about Canadians’ charter rights.
Earlier this year, Ms. Gladu had told a media outlet in her riding that she believed people who cross the floor should run in by-elections.
“Really, the whole point of being an MP is to represent your constituents. So if they’re voting you in under one platform – for you to switch for whatever reasons, just seems to me to not be representing what you’re supposed to be there to represent,” Ms. Gladu told The Independent.
“We elected you under this banner, and if you don’t want to be under that banner, then we deserve a chance to have a redo.”
She did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Globe.