OTTAWA—Except for the ill-conceived public campaign to get well-known commentator Don Cherry installed as a member of the Order of Canada, the Conservatives look like they have carved out a few positive weeks for themselves. It’s better than the abysmal fall and early winter that left many Conservative supporters in a foul mood, and Leader Pierre Poilievre constantly having to answer questions about his leadership.

The brutality of politics being what it is, a few good weeks could be undone by yet another Conservative Member of Parliament crossing the floor to the Liberals; so, it’s better to ride the ups when you have them. All to say, it appears as though the official opposition is adopting a bit of a long-game approach to winning rather than the shock-and-awe short-term calculations that were the hallmark of Poilievre’s first years of leadership.

In some ways, it looks as if the Conservatives are embracing campaign manager Steve Outhouse’s approach to preparing for the endurance triathlons he has impressively done. From all the blood, sweat, and tears he has put in getting ready for those challenges, he knows that many hard, patient miles on the road and laps in lakes are needed to even get you to the finish line, never mind a podium.

The Conservative leader—at least in the last weeks—has been logging those hard, patient miles across the United Kingdom, Germany, and multiple American states. While the mileage is significant, it was the apparent quality of that training that he hopes will deliver dividends. On those foreign outings, he acted carefully to position himself as part of Team Canada; he didn’t—at least in what has been reported—look to demarcate himself in a forceful way from Prime Minister Mark Carney. In fact, in his Joe Rogan Experience podcast performance, when not talking kettlebells and MMA, Poilievre even talked about a mutual respect he and the prime minister share.

Can you imagine the 2024-2025 version of the Conservative leader saying something like that about then-prime minister Justin Trudeau? He’d rather have chucked that damn kettlebell at Trudeau as opposed to saying anything positive about him.

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I am not sure the whole Joe Rogan Experience was a master stroke of political communications as Rogan still repulses more than a few voters, but it did shape and drive mostly positive news coverage for Poilievre for a few days. That is not something that happens as frequently as the Conservative brain trust might like.

Not since Arnold Schwarzenegger stormed pop culture with the classic film Pumping Iron have two dudes talking workout routines, weightlifting instruments, and other bro-like fixations received so much attention. It was a gun show of epic proportions, and Poilievre didn’t even take off his jacket. And Poilievre diehards loved that. So, while he may be into more distance training now, the Conservative leader knows he has to show the biceps every now and then. 

But it’s time to rack the weights, and focus on what is in front of us. The Conservatives have clearly calculated that the landscape has changed, and an election that’s further away is more likely and could be to their benefit if they make the necessary strategic moves to broaden their leader’s appeal. To situate him as a reasonable, competent player in this Trump-driven era of Canadian politics, the Conservatives can’t turn Poilievre into Carney, nor do they want to; but they can chip away at Poilievre’s negatives while striving to gain some benefit. One mile at a time, as their campaign manager well knows.

The key to any good endurance race is doing the proper training. That training requires a mindset and a rigour that doesn’t allow much room for short cuts. Poilievre has never lacked for discipline, but this may be a new challenge for him.

Tim Powers is chairman of Summa Strategies, and managing director of Abacus Data. He is a former adviser to Conservative political leaders.

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