A federal election could come soon, and experts say N.L.'s 7 seats will matter
New Liberal Leader needs to see value N.L. brings to Canada, Avalon MP says
Newfoundlanders and Labradorians could be heading to the polls sooner rather than later following Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's resignation.
Parliament has been prorogued to allow time to elect the party's new leader. When the House of Commons resumes, a non-confidence vote could trigger a federal election — a motion the Liberal government survived three times in the fall while New Democrats were on their side.
Initially pushed by the federal Conservatives, the Liberals and NDP voted against Conservative leader Pierre Poilievere's push to oust the federal government. But now, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh says he is ready to bring down the government in such a vote.
"Jagmeet has been very clear in saying that at the first possible moment when government is back, he will be calling for a non-confidence vote," Mary Shortall, president of the federal New Democratic Party, told CBC Radio.
Singh changed his mind following Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland's surprise resignation from cabinet on Dec. 16.
Shortall said she believes the government might as well get the election ball rolling.
Kristina Ennis, a former PC MHA candidate in Newfoundland and Labrador, said there was an opportunity for that this fall.
"I would have loved to see one happen already," she said. "We had some opportunities to vote in that direction in the House of Commons."
Ennis anticipates a federal election either in the spring or closer to the fall depending on the Liberal's strategy to select a new leader — but she and Shortall don't expect another Liberal win.
Shortall said people are getting tired of politics and are searching for relief from the cost of living.
"The dysfunction of the Parliament has set a tone across Canada and people are feeling that it's irreparable at this point," she said. "Truly people are feeling that they need some relief from the cost of living pressures. "
Seven seats
With only seven seats to represent Newfoundland and Labrador in the House of Commons, Ennis said residents will be looking for someone who understands what the province offers and its value to the country.
"I would love for us to feel supported regardless of the outcome federally," she said.
Ken McDonald, the current Liberal MP for Avalon, said N.L.'s seven seats could make or break someone becoming government.
"I wouldn't want to see someone go there who thinks that Newfoundlanders is somewhere out in the Atlantic Ocean. 'We don't need to deal with them,' he said.
"We only have seven seats, but those seven seats sometimes are very important."
Constituents want to feel represented, he said. In Trudeau's case, Ottawa's sentiment was that his time was up.
"All three caucuses asked the Prime Minister to step away and this was the time to do it. And so he did that," McDonald said.
Former Liberal MP Scott Simms told CBC Trudeau once told him he wanted to change Canada. He's not sure if the Prime Minister achieved his goal.
"There are certain policies that he's put in place that I think will bear fruit down the road," he said. "The thing is, though, it's a job unfinished because he didn't want to go," Simms said, adding he believes Trudeau would have resigned in the summer or fall if he wanted to go.
"I know a lot of people are saying he's going on his own terms, but he's not. He's basically being thrown out," he said.
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With files from The St. John's Morning Show and The Signal
