By Pepper Parr
January 14th, 2025
BURLINGTON, ON
Karina Gould
With the 10th anniversary Levee behind her, Karina Gould’s attention turns to the race for a new leader of the Liberal Party.
The new leader will be chosen by the members of the Liberal Party. If you are 14 years of age, a Canadian citizen or a landed immigrant and are not a member of any other political party you can vote – the closing date to become a Liberal Party member is January 27th.
The closing date for anyone interested in becoming a candidate for the leadership is January 23rd.
Karina Gould is not yet a candidate – but she has said repeatedly that she is seriously considering becoming a candidate.
Mark Carney
At this point it is very clear that Mark Carney, former Governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England will be running.
Chrystia Freeland has announced that she will declare her candidacy today and at the same time announce her first policy promise which will be to impose dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs on U.S. imports to match the tariffs U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has vowed to impose on Canada.
Christy Clark
Christy Clark former Premier of British Columbia is close to deciding what she wants to so. A formidable politician in her own right, she hit a speed bump last week when she was forced to admit that she was a member of the Conservative party when Jean Charest was seeking the leadership of that party.
Clark denied she was ever a member of the Conservative party but evidence showed that she was in fact a paid member.
Francoise Philippe Champagne
Francoise Philippe Champagne will be in Burlington this afternoon doing a fireside chat with members of the Chamber of Commerce. The event is expected to be a conversation about artificial intelligence, economic security, supply chains and critical minerals against the backdrop of the incoming Trump administration in the U.S.
To launch a leadership run, each candidate must collect 300 signatures from registered Liberals, including at least 100 from three different provinces or territories.
The rules are rigid and the timelines are tight.
Gould needs to have a clear sense as to who she would be up against before making any decisions. If Clark found she didn’t have the support she needed Gould would probably throw her hat into the ring.
Several very smart political operatives are currently working with Gould to determine if she has a chance; at least one of them attended the Levee on Sunday.
Karina Gould before she was elected.
When Karina Gould first entered federal politics she was a total unknown. A lifelong resident of Burlington, she came to the Prime Minister’s attention quite early and was made a Member of Cabinet (Minister of Democratic Institutions) and found herself trying to explain why the Prime Minister had decided to not proceed with a ranked ballot in the election. It was a tough time for Gould – but she did the job and went on to be the
Minister for International Development
Minister of Families, Children and Social Development
Government House Leader
She was the Government House Leader right up until Parliament was prorogued on January 6th.
She is still a member of a government that is not going to meet in the House of Commons on March 28th.
When the House of Commons reconvenes there will be a new Speech from the Throne in which the new Prime Minister will set out his or her plans for the government.
The new government is expected to lose a vote of Confidence of the House of Commons which means there will be a federal election.
Exciting times politically and a period of time that Canadians will look back on in a decade and wonder what we did to ourselves.
Will Karina Gould be the Liberal leader who goes up against Pierre Poilievre?
Could be. Can she beat him – she could, despite the hard feelings many Canadians now have for Justin Trudeau and his failures Gould has a mind of her own. She has broken new ground at a number of levels – this is not a timid woman. When people hear the direction she would take the country – expect it to come across as a breath of fresh air – something the country badly needs at this point.
While the Conservatives will do their level best to paint Gould as just a different Justin Trudeau. That would be a mistake. Gould and Trudeau were close but Gould does her own thinking.
Sorry but if she’s the leader I’m voting NDP if it’s the leader is Carney I would vote liberal again. Trudeau and his crony botched the Canadian disability benefit. $200 a month is nothing when provincial ODSP rates are below the poverty line. And we all know the conservatives will do away with this program once they get in they don’t care about the disabled they just care about cutting taxes for the rich guys like Kevin O’Leary who by the way only lives in Canada during the summer the rest of the time he lives in Boston he’s a Canadian and name only
This is neither “possible” and far less probable, she has no appeal outside of a hand full of local supporters, friends and family in Burlington. Has lied in the House in the last session regarding documents related to the green slush fund and failed at just about every portfolio she held. Will be ripped apart if has to deal with Poilievre, not even a contest.
A fool and their money will always be separated.
The election will be a Carney wash, with Freeland a close second, but time will tell. Doubt the rest of Canada and Liberal party members are on board with the Gazette”s fantasy opinions but again they are just opinions.
The only reason Gould is running for the leadership is to shore up her flagging electoral support locally. She has zero chance of winning a federal Liberal leadership race, and she likely knows it. When the debate turns to a serious
discussion on economic issues the race will come down to a battle between Carney and Freeland.
I would think that Gould has a very low recognition across Canada.But running for leader will help her in efforts to retain her MP position.
$350,000 is the price .
We hear lots about Carney but I have yet to see the Politician side.Tough transition for a Banker and life long civil servant .
Editor’s note: Watch the Colbert show of last night – Carney was much better than I expected. Stephen Colbert is a tough interviewer – he pilloried David Frum.
You jest right? Its bad enough the Liberals paralyze the country by shutting Parliament down at the worst time with the character whose going into the White House so they can play whose going to replace the Clown of selfies & his inept Ministers who have bankrupted the nation & have no foreign diplomacy. Now we have to suggest this? Get real!
Champagne has stepped away as well. If Karina is smart so will she.
Looks like it will be a race between Carney and Freeland.
Editor’s note: Gould will declare – soon
Very well put and those who really know her, know that this is all true. She would never bash the Prime Minister, this is not the kind of person that she is. She doesn’t bash anyone, she listens and asks her supporters to do the same. I know because I have gone door to door with her in 2 elections.
Her levee on Sunday made me proud to be both a citizen of this city and a Canadian citizen. Her outreach is awesome and it is genuine which is not an attribute I would assign to many politicians.
You’re entitled to be a loyal fan of Karina Gould, but claiming that “she doesn’t bash anyone”? Truth is that as House Leader, she has bashed Pierre Poilievre and the CPC every chance she gets.
I would like to hear what Hon Karina Gould has to say. IMO the Liberal party needs a serious Chretien style “radical centre” shift. Not sure Gould would even want to do that.
Christy Clark has declared that she will NOT be running for leader of the Liberal Party.
Too bad, not enough runway or francais.
“Gould and Trudeau were close but Gould does her own thinking.” I’m willing to believe you if you can give me just one (1) example. From my perspective and experience she has carried his water from the get-go and should share his fate.
Editor’s note: When Gould was handling the child care matters – she was the one who pushed Doug Ford very hard to get Ontario to the point where affordable day care was going to be available. This was a Minister doing the job she was given.
One should wait to hear what she would put forward as a vision for the country.
Yes Editor – but this was not an independent thought or direction from that of Trudeau. In my opinion, she has been complicit and compliant throughout.
Carney is the only candidate that has a snowballs chance in hell
of beating PP. He’s ten times the man, but the Trudeau albatross
will even strangle him.
If you get Carney, you get Gerald Butts.