Volume 6, Issue 6

September 4, 2015

FIVE WEEKS IN AND THE REAL ELECTION IS

JUST GETTING STARTED!
For more information about any of the issues discussed below please contact Adam Daifallah, at (514) 316-7089
or at adaifallah@hatleystrategies.com.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Humanitarian crisis in Syria hits close to home
Parties prepare to shift into full gear after Labour Day
Montreals mayor give the federal parties a list of demands
Bloc Qubcois hits a block with Quebecers

ANALYSIS
Had the 2015 federal election run its usual five week course, Canadians would have gone to the voting booths this
week. Instead, over six weeks remain before the tight three-way race involving the Conservatives, Liberals, and the
NDP gets settled. And its going get much more intense now that the summer break is over for the majority of
Canadians. Expect the parties to ramp up their electioneering starting next Tuesday.
This week was a particularly quiet one on the campaign trail in terms of policy. But it ended with a somber tone:
photos of a young dead Syrian boy trying to escape Bashar Assads tyranny washed up on a Turkish beach have
pulled on the heart strings of people around the world. While initial reports that the Canadian government denied
his familys refugee application for entry were false, it has sparked a debate within the country about what more
can be done to help refugees from Syria and Iraq. While foreign policy has been a dormant issue over the past five
weeks and hardly ever plays a central role in campaigns, it may now occupy and important place in the discussion.

Volume 6, Issue 6
September 4, 2015

Prime Minister Stephen Harper responded to the story by saying his government has already announced they will
accept 23,000 Iraqi refugees and 11,300 Syrians by 2020. NDP leader Thomas Mulcair announced that he would
bring in 10,000 right away and more later, and Liberal leader Justin Trudeau would bring in 25,000 Syrians as soon
as possible. Harper said that his priority was not just to bring in more refugees, but to ensure that more Syrians can
stay in their own country safely. This, he says, can be done through the global military coalition that is fighting ISIS
and through more humanitarian aid to the region.

THE QUEBEC ANGLE

Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre presented a list of demands to the federal party leaders. Unlike other Canadian
mayors who have stated only a few demands, Coderre came out with a long wish list that will cost taxpayers
around the country $600 million a year to implement. This includes $200 million towards public transit, $342
million for infrastructure (in addition to the new $4.2 billion Champlain Bridge), and $185 million every year for
social housing units. Oh, and there should be no tolls on the Champlain Bridge, there should be more funding for
the CBC, more money pledged for Montreals 375th anniversary, and home-delivery should be reinstituted by
Canada Post. Simple. Coderre met with Justin Trudeau, a former colleague in the House of Commons, and will meet
with Thomas Mulcair shortly. He has not secured a meeting with Harper. Trudeau said he would not put tolls on the
new Champlain Bridge and Mulcair has made reinstating door-to-door an important part of his appeal to voters.
In other news, things are looking grim for Gilles Duceppe. The leader of the Bloc Qubcois only recently returned
to the helm of his party after getting pummeled in the last election, but it seems as though hes heading for the
same results this time. A recent poll conducted in the riding he held for 20 years prior to 2011 has him at 20%
support, with the incumbent NDP MP Hlne Laverdire at 57%. Provincially, the party stands at 15%. It an election
were held today, the separatist party would win exactly 0 seats.
Mlanie Joly has had a rough time recently, but the battle with her own party may now be over. The Liberal
candidate in Ahuntsic-Cartierville won her nomination two weeks ago after a tough battle with three other
contenders, only to have the legitimacy of the vote questioned by one of the defeated candidates. This week, a
Party review panel has judged that the Joly rightfully won the vote.

For any additional questions please contact: Adam Daifallah, Partner

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