Share this Story : Edmonton Journal Copy Link Email X Reddit Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr

Braid: Three byelection losses and a majority across the aisle; more hits to Poilievre's leadership

The plunge in Conservative support is ominous for Poilievre

You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.

How much more Liberal raiding and spending and winning can Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre survive?

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Exclusive articles by David Staples, Keith Gerein and others, Oilers news from Cult of Hockey, Ask EJ Anything features, the Noon News Roundup and Under the Dome newsletters.

Unlimited online access to Edmonton Journal and 15 news sites with one account.

Edmonton Journal ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.

Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.

Support local journalism.

Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.

Exclusive articles by David Staples, Keith Gerein and others, Oilers news from Cult of Hockey, Ask EJ Anything features, the Noon News Roundup and Under the Dome newsletters.

Unlimited online access to Edmonton Journal and 15 news sites with one account.

Edmonton Journal ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.

Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.

Support local journalism.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

Access articles from across Canada with one account.

Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.

Enjoy additional articles per month.

Get email updates from your favourite authors.

Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.

Access articles from across Canada with one account

Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments

Enjoy additional articles per month

Get email updates from your favourite authors

Sign In or Create an Account

Three byelection losses Monday night are a further humiliation. Prime Minister Mark Carney took quick advantage.

The Liberal majority — 174 seats — wasn’t 12 hours old when the PM dropped the price of gasoline by 10 cents a litre.

He also said Asia wants Canadian energy and “we’re not just advancing specific projects, but we’re setting up the framework for major, major investment in Alberta and across the country for decades to come.”

At that same moment, Premier Danielle Smith’s government was rolling out a bill that orders Alberta regulators to go through a project’s approval process within 120 days.

Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns.

There was an error, please provide a valid email address.

By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.

A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.

The next issue of Headline News will soon be in your inbox.

We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again

Interested in more newsletters? Browse here.

Alberta doesn’t see this as a challenge to Ottawa. The Liberals no longer claim power to approve Alberta projects.

While suspicion never dies in an Alberta premier’s office, the province is in deep collaboration with the old enemy. Smith still supports Poilievre but their interests have diverged.

The byelections solidified Carney’s hold on this country. His government is likely safe for three more years.

The Conservatives have breathing room to figure out leadership, but it’s hard-won. The four floor-crossers helped end the threat of a snap election.

The Liberals are still angling in the caucus, says one angry Conservative player.

Designated Liberal top-hats do the courting. Carney surely wants at least two more defectors to raise his seat total to 176, a more comfortable majority that protects against unforeseen losses.

Poilievre is flailing. That leads to mistakes.

Carney and his two top economic ministers — Tim Hodgson and François-Philippe Champagne — laughed out loud when a reporter asked what the PM thought of Poilievre saying he’s bad at economics.

“Wow,” said Carney, the former central bank boss for Canada and then England.

Peter MacKay says floor-crossings are a 'body blow,' as poaching attempts continue on Parliament Hill

Braid: Another Conservative MP crosses; Liberals will have their majority Monday

Advertisement 1Story continues belowThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.document.addEventListener(`DOMContentLoaded`,function(){let template=document.getElementById(`oop-ad-template`);if(template&&!template.dataset.adInjected){let clone=template.content.cloneNode(!0);template.replaceWith(clone),template.parentElement&&(template.parentElement.dataset.adInjected=`true`)}});

Then the three of them got the giggles.

Poilievre had told a podcaster, “There’s one thing that’s worse than being uneducated and that’s being badly educated. And Mr. Carney is very badly educated on economics.”

He added: “It’s hard to understand how a guy who claims to be so smart has been so wrong for so long.”

Carney has two degrees from Harvard and a doctorate from Oxford, all in economics.

Poilievre is a proud University of Calgary grad in international relations — and good for him.

But, really, no politician with his mind in gear throws a slow pitch like that.

The Conservatives were never going to win any of the three byelections.

Defeat was so certain that they didn’t put much campaign money into any of them.

But the plunge in Conservative support is ominous for Poilievre.

In Toronto’s University-Rosedale, arguably the heart of the entire Liberal empire, Carney’s candidate won 64 per cent of the vote.

Next came the NDP with 18.9 per cent, double the party’s support in 2025.

That’s the NDP under radical leader Avi Lewis.

Stan Bowman just pulled off his second great trade as Edmonton Oilers GM Cult of Hockey

Stan Bowman just pulled off his second great trade as Edmonton Oilers GM

'Further burden the public system': AMA raises concerns with Alberta's plan to allow patients to privately pay for diagnostic testing Local News

'Further burden the public system': AMA raises concerns with Alberta's plan to allow patients to privately pay for diagnostic testing

Advertisement 2Story continues belowThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.document.addEventListener(`DOMContentLoaded`,function(){let template=document.getElementById(`oop-ad-template`);if(template&&!template.dataset.adInjected){let clone=template.content.cloneNode(!0);template.replaceWith(clone),template.parentElement&&(template.parentElement.dataset.adInjected=`true`)}});

'Not a punchline': Kevin Lowe disappointed by Chris Pronger's recollection of Edmonton trade Sports

'Not a punchline': Kevin Lowe disappointed by Chris Pronger's recollection of Edmonton trade

Gunter: Alberta NDP's Nenshi gamble failing to pay off, according to Leger poll Opinion

Gunter: Alberta NDP's Nenshi gamble failing to pay off, according to Leger poll

If Connor Ingram stays this good, Edmonton Oilers are going to be trouble Sports

If Connor Ingram stays this good, Edmonton Oilers are going to be trouble

The Conservative was third with a dismal 12.4 per cent, 10 points lower than in 2025.

As if to show how grim this is, one Poilievre loyalist said it’s encouraging that the NDP did better because Liberal-NDP splits are good for Conservatives.

In suburban Scarborough Southwest, the Liberal candidate won nearly 70 per cent of the vote.

The Conservative got 18.4 per cent, 12 points below the 2025 general election.

Terrebonne was a close race for the Liberals, but they topped the Bloc Quebecois by a few hundred votes.

The Conservative candidate pulled exactly 3.3 per cent.

Conservatives take heart in one recent national poll, from Abacus, that shows them only seven points behind the Liberals. Several others find Liberal leads in the teens.

This is truly a grim moment for the Conservatives. They risk collapsing back into their Saskatchewan-Alberta base.

But their leader, it appears, has every intention of staying on for three more years.

Don Braid’s column appears regularly in the Herald

X and Bluesky: @DonBraid

Share this Story : Edmonton Journal Copy Link Email X Reddit Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.

© Edmonton Journal