Canadian PM battles to hold power
Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin battled to stave off defeat today in what could be one of Canada’s closest elections ever.
Polls show a virtual tie between the Conservative Party and Mr Martin’s Liberals, who have held power for 11 years
Mr Martin, in his first election after succeeding Jean Chretien last year, has conceded that the Liberals are likely to lose their majority in Parliament.
He hopes at least to win more seats than the resurgent Conservative Party in today’s national election, and thus extend the Liberals’ 11-year hold on power as head of a minority government.
The polls show a virtual tie between the Liberals and Conservatives, with neither likely to win a clear majority in the 308-seat House of Commons.
Whichever gets the most seats would try to form a minority government – the first in Canada since 1979.
Unless the Liberals and Conservatives choose to cooperate, the balance of power would rest with the left-wing New Democratic Party and the Bloc Quebecois.
The Bloc advocates independence for Quebec and is expected to win most of the 75 seats from the French-speaking province.
One of the ironies of the election is that the Bloc Quebecois, a party whose fundamental mission is to secede from Canada, might end up in the role of kingmaker.
Bloc leader Gilles Duceppe could become one of Canada’s most powerful figures if his party’s votes in Parliament are needed to pass legislation.
He says an incoming minority government should allow major bills to be decided by so-called “free votes” - votes in which Parliament members are not bound to follow party lines.
“It’s going to be interesting to have a Parliament that decides things not on a partisan basis, but takes into account what Quebeckers and Canadians want,” he said.
