Prime Minister Mark Carney is greeted by supporters as he arrives at the Liberal convention in Montreal on Thursday.Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press
The train from Ottawa to Montreal was packed with Liberals. Three years ago, staffers in Justin Trudeau’s government weren’t this keen on walking two blocks from Parliament Hill to the last Liberal convention.
These are good times for the Liberal Party of Canada. But it’s a different Liberal Party.
It’s not quite as easy to define the Liberal Party, either, now that Marilyn Gladu, an MP who until Wednesday was best known as a social conservative opposed to abortion and vaccine mandates, has left the Conservatives to join the Liberals. That happened at the same time as the party counts former Ontario NDP deputy leader Doly Begum as a by-election candidate. The tent is so big you can’t see where it ends.
There have been Liberals texting each other with consternation about the fact that Ms. Gladu is now one of them, but the overall sentiment at the convention in Montreal is triumphalism. Woohoo! The polls have them way ahead. Ms. Gladu is yet another trophy, the fifth floor-crosser, and Liberals feel good about winning.
Three years ago, at the last convention of the Liberal Party of Canada, during the tenure of Mr. Trudeau, the thought of Ms. Gladu joining would have been alien. The Liberals were in a moribund state, anyway, so they weren’t attracting floor-crossers. But if Ms. Gladu had shown up then, there would have been pointing and shouting.
Now, after the initial gasp of surprise, it’s accepted as part of the new, Mark Carney Liberal Party. There are more than a few Liberals at the convention in Montreal enjoying the water torture inflicted on Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre as he lost yet another MP. The big tent is part of being on top.
The Liberals used to have MPs with social-conservative views similar to Ms. Gladu’s, including the last Liberal to win her Sarnia-area riding, Roger Gallaway. But he and several other socially conservative Liberals left office 20 years ago. Under Mr. Trudeau, who required all MPs to vote pro-choice, they didn’t fit with the Liberal Party.
Mr. Carney with MP Marilyn Gladu in Ottawa on Wednesday.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
Speaking to reporters Thursday night, Ms. Gladu tried to turn over her past. She said she’s pro-choice though she has her own “faith traditions.” And although she had recently said floor-crossers should resign and run in by-elections, she has chosen not to do that.
It was left to Mr. Carney, who once wrote a book titled Value(s), to field questions about whether there are now any views that are so unacceptable to Liberals that they would lead him to reject a floor-crosser.
The Prime Minister insisted Ms. Gladu will have to vote with the Liberal government on gay rights and its pro-choice positions on abortion, so it’s the government’s policy that matters.
Opinion: We know bad floor crossings when we see them
If that’s true, then the Liberals will presumably have to give up on their perennial election-campaign tactic of blasting Conservative leaders for the anti-abortion and anti-same-sex marriage comments made by candidates – unacceptably un-Liberal remarks that are a lot like the things Ms. Gladu has said over the years.
Mr. Carney’s real argument is that the Liberal Party hasn’t changed its values, but the floor-crossers realize it’s a critical time for the country and have decided to join the mission to “build Canada strong.” In other words, it’s a crisis, and that trumps other things.
Still, the values to be highlighted at Mr. Carney’s Liberal convention are noticeably different from the ones on display at the previous one in 2023, when Mr. Trudeau was still leader.
The program for the 2023 convention was heavy on fighting the climate crisis, fighting racism and building an inclusive future. This year’s is less green and less woke, with sessions on building homes, nation-building projects and affordability.
Marilyn Gladu's floor crossing in the House of Commons could have a big impact for the Liberals. The Globe’s Stephanie Levitz explains what’s needed for the party to achieve a majority.
The Globe and Mail
By now, it is obvious that Mr. Carney has moved the Liberal government’s priorities – his government, unlike Mr. Trudeau’s, struck a deal with Alberta’s United Conservative government, that includes a proposal to build a pipeline. The Liberal Party seems to have moved seamlessly with him. You can bet this convention won’t test that.
Liberals lined the halls for a glimpse of the Prime Minister arriving, pressing close in a crowd to cheer. Ms. Gladu was there, too. This convention is being attended by more delegates – more than 4,000 – than any previous one that didn’t select a new leader.
Three years ago, the Liberal Party was headed for defeat. Now it is a million miles ahead in opinion polls. It might sweep all three by-elections to be held on Monday, cementing a majority government.
Those things will make it a lot easier for Liberals to gloss over questions of what values they represent. Electoral success, winning and holding power, are certainly core Liberal values.