The Writ

With just days to go before the Manitoba election comes to a close, the polls suggest it could be Wab Kinew and the NDP’s to lose. But can Heather Stefanson’s Progressive Conservatives hold on to win a third consecutive victory?To discuss these final stages of the Manitoba campaign, I’m joined by Curtis Brown, principal at Probe Research, Ian Froese, the CBC’s provincial affairs reporter in Manitoba, and Kelly Saunders, associate professor in the department of political science at Brandon University.Join me for a livestream of the Manitoba election results on Tuesday, starting at 8 PM CT / 9 PM ET. You’ll be able to find the livestream here.And don’t miss the latest episode of The Numbers podcast, out every Thursday for Patrons and every Friday for everyone via Apple Podcast, Spotify and wherever else you get your podcasts.In addition to listening to this episode of The Writ Podcast in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe

We discuss just how well Canadians know the names of the Conservative leader and the members of the Liberal cabinet, as well as news about India, the creation of a new federal party, the latest Manitoba polls and a potential snap election in New Brunswick. Plus, we answer listener questions and Philippe has another quiz for Éric.To get access to the Discord page for The Numbers and to get early access to episodes on Thursdays, you can become a Patron at our Patreon site here.As always, in addition to listening to the episode in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube.If you want to add The Numbers (which has episodes out every week, with only every second episode hitting The Writ Podcast’s feed) and our French-language podcast Les chiffres to your favourite podcasting app, you can find them at the links below:Apple Podcasts: The Numbers / Les chiffresSpotify: The Numbers / Les chiffresGoogle Podcasts: The Numbers / Les chiffres This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe

Manitoba’s election campaign is underway and is setting up to be a close contest between Heather Stefanson’s Progressive Conservatives and Wab Kinew’s New Democrats — so close, in fact, that Dougald Lamont’s Liberals could end up with the balance of power.To discuss this first stage of the Manitoba campaign, I’m joined by Curtis Brown, principal at Probe Research, Ian Froese, the CBC’s provincial affairs reporter in Manitoba, and Kelly Saunders, associate professor in the department of political science at Brandon University.As always, in addition to listening to the episode in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube.Are you a paid subscriber to The Writ? Then keep an eye on the chat, where I often solicit questions for the podcast. You can find The Writ’s subscribers-only chat here.Don’t miss the latest episode of The Numbers podcast, out every Thursday for Patrons and every Friday for everyone else via Apple Podcast, Spotify and wherever else you get your podcasts. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe

In this first episode of The Numbers, a collaboration between myself and Philippe J. Fournier, we do a rundown of the latest federal polling and what it means for the three major parties. We also discuss the Conservative convention, the impact of the Greenbelt controversy on the Ontario PCs, the early days of the Manitoba election and the upcoming provincial byelection in Jean-Talon.We then answer some listener questions and Philippe subjects me to a little quiz.As always, in addition to listening to the episode in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube.To get access to the Discord page for The Numbers and to get early access to episodes on Thursdays, you can become a Patron at our Patreon site here.If you want to add The Numbers (which will have episodes out every week, with only every second episode hitting The Writ Podcast’s feed) and our French-language podcast Les chiffres to your favourite podcasting app, you can find them at the links below:Apple Podcasts: The Numbers / Les chiffresSpotify: The Numbers / Les chiffresGoogle Podcasts: The Numbers / Les chiffres This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe

It’s a break week here at The Writ, but things are about to get pretty busy this fall season with the launch of two new podcasts: The Numbers and Les chiffres!Philippe J. Fournier and I are really excited to start these two new projects, and we hope that you’ll be just as excited for them as we are. You can find more information about The Numbers and Les chiffres at our website here.We also wrote some introductory posts for The Numbers and Les chiffres that you might want to check out.Take a listen to find out what this means for subscribers to The Writ and listeners to The Writ Podcast — but don’t worry, The Writ Podcast isn’t going anywhere! It’ll move to a bi-weekly schedule, and in the off weeks you’ll get a new episode of The Numbers in your feed. But you’ll also want to follow The Numbers and Les chiffres in their own feeds in order not to miss anything. In addition to being available on our Patreon site, here’s where you can find these two new podcasts on other apps:Apple Podcasts: The Numbers / Les chiffresSpotify: The Numbers / Les chiffresGoogle Podcasts: The Numbers / Les chiffres This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe

Dan Albas and Greg Fergus, Members of Parliament, discuss the challenges of engaging with constituents during breaks, difficulties of travel and time management in Canada, the importance of empathy, recharging during the summer, and transitioning back to Ottawa for the Fall Sitting.

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre has used the summer to try a new look and launch a new ad campaign designed to introduce him to voters — will it work, and what is it trying to achieve?Plus, the fall political season is fast approaching. So what do each of the parties have to do in the coming months as politics start to heat up again in Ottawa?To answer these questions, two-thirds of the political pollster panel has been re-convened and I’m joined by Dan Arnold and Andrew Enns. (James Valcke was unable to join us this week.)Dan, chief strategy officer at Pollara, was director of research and advertising in Justin Trudeau’s prime minister's office and the Liberals’ pollster during the last three federal election campaigns.Andrew is executive vice-president at Léger. He conducted polling for the Conservatives in Stephen Harper’s last three campaigns and has polled for provincial conservative parties across Canada.As always, in addition to listening to the episode in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube.Are you a paid subscriber to The Writ? Then keep an eye on the chat, where I often solicit questions for the podcast. You can find The Writ’s subscribers-only chat here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe

With less than two months to go before election day in Manitoba, the polls are suggesting the race could be neck-and-neck between Heather Stefanson’s governing Progressive Conservatives and the opposition New Democrats under Wab Kinew.To help set us up for the Manitoba election campaign which is only weeks away from officially getting started, I’m joined this week by Niigaan Sinclair and Dan Lett, hosts of the Niigaan and the Lone Ranger podcast. You can check out their podcast here.As always, in addition to listening to the episode in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube.Are you a paid subscriber to The Writ? Then keep an eye on the chat, where I often solicit questions for the podcast. You can find The Writ’s subscribers-only chat here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe

On Thursday, three byelections will answer two questions in Saskatchewan politics:1) Are cracks in the conservative coalition that makes up the governing Saskatchewan Party starting to form?2) Will the Saskatchewan New Democrats show any signs that they can win the kind of seats they need if they are to ever return to power?To help set up the three provincial byelections in Regina Walsh Acres, Regina Coronation Park and Lumsden-Morse, I’m joined this week by Adam Hunter, the CBC’s provincial affairs reporter in Saskatchewan.LIVESTREAM: Join me and Philippe J. Fournier for a livestream of these Saskatchewan byelection results on August 10, 8 PM CT / 10 PM ET. You’ll find the livestream here.Are you a paid subscriber to The Writ? Then keep an eye on the chat, where I often solicit questions for the podcast. You can find The Writ’s subscribers-only chat here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau didn’t just shuffle his cabinet — he overhauled it, replacing seven ministers and changing the roles of most of the others.A simple refresh ahead of the next election or an admission that things weren’t working?To discuss what it all means, I’m joined this week by Stephanie Levitz of the Toronto Star and the CBC’s Aaron Wherry.As always, in addition to listening to the episode in your inbox, at TheWrit.ca or on podcast apps like Apple Podcasts, you can also watch this episode on YouTube.Are you a paid subscriber to The Writ? Then keep an eye on the chat, where I often solicit questions for the podcast. You can find The Writ’s subscribers-only chat here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thewrit.ca/subscribe