Election defeat doesn’t mark a political end

So, you think you lost an election? Maybe, maybe not. Here’s the bad news. Experiencing electoral defeat is not for the faint of heart. Having lived through five victories and two defeats during my husband’s electoral years, I too felt the sting of personal defeat in 2008 when I ran as a federal candidate.

The concession to your victorious opponent is, of course, the hardest part, whether by a phone call or a difficult walk into the opposition headquarters. Your presence typically produces an awkward silence as everyone registers the moment.

Exiting quickly after offering congratulations, you head to your own victory “party,” only to realize your team needs consolation. For weeks afterwards, a defeated candidate is consumed with dismantling offices, writing thank-you notes and attempting to find employment for staffers. Personal reflection must wait.

An ordinary candidate defeat is tough, but it is nothing compared to the challenge and agony facing a leader whose party suffers a massive blow.

In 1993, Kim Campbell watched her party fall to two seats from 156. Kathleen Wynne recently retained her own seat, as did Stephen Harper in 2015. However, Wynne’s Liberals were reduced to seven seats while Harper lost his majority government.

Because the party and government apparatus falls with a leader, campaign post-mortems are painful exercises. Blame needs to find a victim, or a reason at least Here’s the good news. An electoral loss is nothing more than a learning experience — akin to a failed business venture or a litigator’s courtroom defeat.

Far from ending one’s political career, a defeat is often a springboard to the future by raising the candidate’s profile and reputation. A well-organized campaign also produces networks of the vanquished, donors and workers, who serve as an early warning signal to the victor. Depending on the wishes of the candidate, these networks can be disarmed or reassembled for the time ahead.

Leadership candidates, in particular, instinctively understand the care and feeding of supporters. Retaining the loyalty of their teams while expanding their numbers is top of mind, even when several years must be spanned to achieve their goals.

Brian Mulroney learned from his loss to Joe Clark in 1976 and famously networked his way to the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party seven years later.

Jean Chrétien, who celebrated the 25th anniversary of his first majority government this week, managed to keep many of his 1984 supporters when he lost the Liberal leadership to John Turner. Chrétien simply plugged his original team back in and integrated new supporters when he won in 1990 as leader after a hard-fought contest against Paul Martin, who years later became leader himself.

Unlike former prime ministers, Patrick Brown did not wait years to stage a second act. CP reporter Allison Jones noted that Brown was able to transfer the loy- alty of his team in months as he bounced “from Progressive Conservative leader to ex-PC leader to PC leader candidate to Peel chair candidate to mayor of Brampton.”

Surprisingly, defeat can also bring out the very best in politics.

While hurriedly scrolling through Ontario municipal results last Monday, George Smitherman’s gracious Twitter comment caught my eye.

The former deputy premier of Ontario and former mayoralty candidate for Toronto, who lost to Rob Ford in 2010, was attempting a comeback as a local councillor in his former constituency.

No stranger to both victory and defeat, Smitherman struck a particularly elegant note by heartily congratulating Kristyn Wong-Tam, the incumbent winner. He thanked the voters “for giving me the chance to fall in love again” and “to the other 17 candidates and our friends, families and supporters, thanks for making democracy proud.”

Smitherman perfectly captured the principles of fair democratic campaign contests. In its finest moments, politics, for all its pitched and noisy battles, also includes respect for opponents, deference to voters and gratitude for volunteers.

Whether a candidate graciously accepts defeat, bounces back from defeat or uses defeat to stride off in another direction, they contribute mightily to democracy.

There is much to be said for trying, no matter how many times — because the road ahead may one day curve back in your direction.

Penny Collenette is an adjunct professor of law at the University of Ottawa and was a senior director of the Prime Minister’s Office for Jean Chrétien. She is a freelance contributor for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @penottawa