Melanie Joly calls for 'majority' Liberal government days away from election

OTTAWA — Liberal Leader Mark Carney has been careful in choosing his words in calling for a “strong” mandate , but his foreign affairs minister and incumbent MP Melanie Joly finally said out loud what every Liberal is thinking: a majority government is in reach. Speaking to Liberal supporters at a rally in in Laval on Tuesday evening, Joly referenced Liberal hopes for a majority government not once but twice when she took the podium next to Liberal candidate and fellow minister François-Philippe Champagne. “We know we’re able to have a majority government because Quebecers will answer present because we need a strong mandate, a strong mandate to negotiate with (U.S.) President (Donald) Trump, to build the strongest economy in the G7,” she said in French. Joly went on to tell supporters how much she knows how hard they have been working especially during the final stretch of the campaign, knocking on doors and calling voters. “So together… let’s make sure to give ourselves a Liberal majority government!” Other speakers who took the stage at the Laval rally did not go nearly as far as Joly did. Marjorie Michel, who served as former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s deputy chief of staff and is now running in his vacated Montreal riding of Papineau, also addressed the crowd and offered words of cautious optimism days away from election day. “We are not arrogant,” she said.” We work hard. We keep our head down, but we will win big… We will fight and win for Canada strong,” she added, referencing the party’s slogan. Annie Koutrakis, an incumbent MP in the Laval riding where the rally was held, had the task of introducing Carney on stage. She said of the Liberal team “that we all firmly wish (he) will be elected by Canadians to serve a full-term as their prime minister.” Carney arrived on stage wearing a Montreal Canadiens hockey jersey with his last name on the back and the number “24” which is a reference to the fact that he became the 24th prime minister weeks ago. He said it was a gift from former minister Marc Miller. As he has been doing for the past few days, Carney compared the final stretch of the campaign to the last five minutes of the third period of a hockey game. And given that the Habs are in the playoffs, he emphasized it was like the seventh game for the Stanley Cup. “It’s time to give everything,” he said in a speech where he spoke mostly in French. “You need to knock on even more doors, you need to make even more calls, you need to talk to even more friends, family and neighbours, and above all, you need to vote Liberal.” Polls have been placing the Liberals a few points ahead of the Conservatives nationally, with wider gaps in Atlantic Canada, Ontario and Quebec. But Quebec might decide if the Liberals form a minority or a majority government, say observers. Philippe J. Fournier, creator of the poll aggregator 338Canada, recently told the National Post that Liberals need to win more ridings like the ones in Laval to form a majority. “If the Liberals let (these ridings) slip, it could cost them their majority,” he said. Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet has also been telling Quebecers that the Liberals are assured to form the next government — an attempt to convince Bloc voters to come back home and keep the Liberals to a minority like in the past two elections. Blanchet’s strategy seems to be paying off, to the point where the Bloc has been slowly climbing back in the polls and he could aspire to save a few more of his seats. Carney has pushed back against Blanchet’s suggestion, arguing that Quebecers in particular need a strong voice at the negotiating table to push back against Trump. “I made clear from (the start of my campaign) that we would never have supply management on the table, that we would never have the French language on the table,” he said. “It’s the person at the table who will make those determinations and decisions.” “So, the issue is having as strong a mandate as possible,” he added on Tuesday. “Only the federal government can make those protections in these negotiations.” Many Canadians have already made their choice, as Elections Canada reported that 7.3 million Canadians voted in advance polls. The election is on April 28. National Post calevesque@postmedia.com Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what’s really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. Sign up here. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our politics newsletter, First Reading, here.