Montreal Gazette

Plenty of attacks on last day of campaign

TORIES, LIBERALS IN DEAD HEAT WITH POLLS POINTING TO MINORITY GOVERNMENT

- CHRISTOPHE­R NARDI in Montreal

Federal party leaders made their ultimate plea to Canadians for their support — and sent their last barbs towards their opponents — on the final day of the federal campaign as polls put the Liberals and Conservati­ves neckand-neck and point toward another minority government.

Who is the best leader to guide Canada out of the COVID-19 pandemic? Me, and definitely not my opponents, each federal leader proclaimed on Sunday as millions of Canadians prepare to cast their ballots on Monday.

Every leader except the Conservati­ve's Erin O'toole had a loaded travel and event schedule Sunday as they aimed to galvanize their base and seduce the rare remaining undecided voters throughout the country.

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau began the day with a rally in Montreal before travelling through the country to attend more in-person and virtual events in Ontario, Manitoba, British Columbia, Alberta, and Atlantic Canada.

In British Columbia for the day, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh made stops in seven different ridings held by either the Liberals or Conservati­ves that his party is hoping to turn orange on Monday.

Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-françois Blanchet also made seven stops to meet with candidates and speak to reporters throughout Quebec, starting the day in Liberal candidate François-philippe Champagne's Saint-maurice–champlain riding before heading east to visit more battlegrou­nd ridings in the Eastern Townships.

Unlike his opponents, O'toole kept his public schedule very light, with only two campaign stops to meet supporters in southern Ontario and no press conference­s to conclude his campaign.

“That will get me 15, 20 seconds more on news bulletins,” Blanchet said, teasing O'toole's decision not to speak to media Sunday.

The strongest barbs on Sunday were exchanged between Trudeau and O'toole, with the Liberal leader beginning the day warning Canadians that a Conservati­ve government would not show the necessary leadership on vaccinatio­n to finally put an end to the pandemic. He also accused O'toole of proposing an environmen­tal plan that would bring the country “backwards.”

When asked why he wants a majority government, Trudeau also launched a shot at provincial Conservati­ve leadership handling of COVID-19 all the while drawing a parallel with O'toole's party.

“We are seeing right now what the wrong choices made in Alberta and Saskatchew­an have led to,” Trudeau told reporters, referring to the dramatic spike in COVID-19 cases in those two provinces that are forcing premiers Jason Kenney and Scott Moe to impose new restrictio­ns as well as a vaccine passport.

During a very brief public statement to supporters in Markham, Ont., O'toole retorted that Trudeau led “the most corrupt government in our history” all the while lambasting the Liberals for “spending with abandon” during the pandemic and then calling an election Canadians largely view as unnecessar­y and unwanted.

“Tomorrow, we can make sure that we do not reward Mr. Trudeau for a 600-million-dollar election,” he said.

In a sign that the Bloc Québécois's recent surge in polls is concerning the Liberals, Trudeau also exhorted Quebecers to vote for a party that could form a government as opposed to one whose only power is “being in opposition.”

Speaking to voters in the town of Coaticook (in the battlegrou­nd riding of Compton—stanstead), Blanchet accused the Liberals of “scuttling” a Bloc bill that aimed to protect supply management for farmers in Quebec by calling an election “that we still don't know why we're having.”

He also repeated his call for a minority government in Ottawa, echoing a wish from popular Quebec premier François Legault. During a separate event in front of his party's youth wing Sunday, Legault reiterated his warning about supporting parties like the Liberals, NDP and Greens that he says want to intervene more in provincial jurisdicti­ons, not less.

In B.C., NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh encouraged Canadians not to succumb to the Liberal's plea to progressiv­es to vote for them to prevent a Conservati­ve win, accusing Trudeau of doing things “just for show” and only “making it sound like he cares.”

“New Democrats are the ones who are going to fight for you,” Singh said to supporters, noting that he's felt an “incredible” amount of support on the ground recently. “We think that Mr. O'toole and Mr. Trudeau would be bad for Canada.”

The latest Leger-national Post-journal de Montréal poll shows Conservati­ve and Liberal support in near lockstep, with the former polling at 33 per cent and the latter at 32 per cent among decided voters.

“It's really hard to see anybody getting a majority out of these numbers,” Leger Executive Vice-president Andrew Enns commented Friday.

The survey put NDP support at 19 per cent, People's Party of Canada support at six per cent and Green Party of Canada support at two per cent.

In Quebec, the Bloc Québécois jumped five points in the past week, now reaching 32 per cent, thanks in much part to controvers­y surroundin­g a question posed by English debate moderator Shachi Kurl just over one week ago.

Polls open at 9:30 a.m. Monday, and in normal times the results would be all but guaranteed before the clock strikes midnight, But these are not normal times. Elections Canada warned Sunday there are nearly a million special ballots to be tallied and it might be four days before they're all counted.

Elections Canada spokeswoma­n Natasha Gauthier said in an email Sunday that officials will start counting special ballots on Tuesday morning. They need a twostep verificati­on process to ensure people haven't also voted in person, and Gauthier said in most cases the counting will be done Wednesday, but it's possible it could take up to four days “due to high volumes or logistical challenges.”

 ?? ADRIAN WYLD / THE CANADIAN PRESS ?? Federal party leaders made their final pitch to voters on Sunday as the election campaign draws to a close. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, left, campaigned in B.C., Conservati­ve Leader Erin O'toole was in southern Ontario and Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau appeared in Maple, Ont.
ADRIAN WYLD / THE CANADIAN PRESS Federal party leaders made their final pitch to voters on Sunday as the election campaign draws to a close. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, left, campaigned in B.C., Conservati­ve Leader Erin O'toole was in southern Ontario and Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau appeared in Maple, Ont.
 ?? JONATHAN HAYWARD / THE CANADIAN PRESS ??
JONATHAN HAYWARD / THE CANADIAN PRESS
 ?? COLE BURSTON / GETTY IMAGES ??
COLE BURSTON / GETTY IMAGES

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