POSTED BY: GARY MAUSER OCTOBER 28, 2019
Maxime Bernier’s lost his own seat, but the PPC still managed to hurt the Conservatives. Bernier’s egomania helped Trudeau and Blair.
The Peoples Party of Canada didn’t cost the Conservatives the majority they’d hoped for, but the PPC may have cost the Conservatives 7 seats in total across Canada, and two in BC.
However noble their claims, splinter parties like Bernier’s act (at least for a few elections) as spoilers, drawing a vote away from parties that have a real chance to form government.
According to an analysis of the Preliminary Vote on Election Night by RangeBob (a GunNutz nom de plume), the Conservatives would have won 7 more seats if all of the votes won by the PPC were added to the Conservative vote across the country (This is certainly an overestimate because some would have stayed home and a few would have voted for other parties).
The seven ‘lost’ seats were divided: 6 went to the Liberals and the NDP got one.
British Columbia
Two of the seven seats the Conservatives failed to win were in BC.
[1] In Coquitlam–Port Coquitlam,
Nick Insley (Conservative) won 19,788 votes — just 339 votes fewer than the Liberal winner, Ron McKinnon.
The PPC candidate won 703 votes.
[2] In South Okanagan–West Kootenay, where
Konanz, the Conservative candidate, won 24,013 votes — 796 fewer than the winning NDP candidate, Cannings.
The PPC candidate won 1,638 votes.
A small but painful wound. The CPC lost a few good MPs, if not the majority they had hoped for. Bernier’s egotistical effort ended up contributing to the Liberals’ success.
The PPC vote, even if we’re a bit more cautious, stung the Conservatives. If just half of the PPC votes were added to the Conservatives’ share of the vote, the Conservatives would have won 5 more seats.
Check out the statistics yourself. Elections Canada has posted the most recent counts available.
Now what?
Don’t get me wrong. There is a need for a libertarian political party that can argue for civilian gun rights, social-conservative policies, and rational immigration policies.
Max Bernier just wasn’t the leader many had hoped for.
Maybe next time?