The federal election offers the prairie provinces an excellent opportunity to use their clout to a much higher degree than in previous campaigns.
Voters should do so enthusiastically.
The table is set for an intensely competitive campaign. For the first time in many elections, the federal Conservatives cannot count on unfailing support across Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.
It may be there, but the NDP’s big win in the Alberta election and a preliminary federal poll that suggests the party is leading in the Prairies, albeit in small sampling, suggest at least the possibility of a sea change in Canada’s heartland.
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How big would that be? In 2011, the Prairies delivered 51 out of 56 seats to the Conservatives, despite the fact that the NDP took almost 26 percent of the vote in Manitoba and 32 percent in Saskatchewan.
It’s evident that even a small tilt away from the Conservatives could yield a bounty of MPs for the New Democrats or the Liberals.
And boundaries in many ridings have changed. In Saskatchewan, which delivered 13 out of 14 seats to the Conservatives in 2011, there are more urban ridings. Previously urban areas were carved up and merged with rural areas, where the Conservatives are more popular.
So, the Prairies are indeed poised to be-come an election battleground. That means we’ll see leaders here more often, and they shouldn’t expect to visit without a serious agricultural agenda.
Stephen Harper’s record on agriculture in the Prairies is spotty. Selling the CWB was not popular with many farmers, though it’s not clear on which side the majority of farmers sit at the moment.
And while the Conservatives did address serious transportation problems through legislation, some farmers are still not happy with the situation. That’s not to say the Liberals’ Justin Trudeau or NDP’s Tom Mulcair would have done better; but if they want to make serious inroads in the Prairies, they must address the situation during the campaign.
Voters here should demand answers as MPs knock on their doors, at local all-candidates debates and as leaders visit.
There are several other important areas in which prairie voters should force the parties to pay attention.
Changes to agricultural support programs such as AgriStability should be discussed.
Transportation management, the structure of Growing Forward 3, struggles accessing farm labour, in part due to government policies, are all good fodder for debate.
The Trans-Pacific Partnership talks must also be scrutinized. The degree to which supply management could or should be compromised to open up more markets for other producers – if at all – is one every party leader must address.
And what government can expect the support of prairie framers without voicing a position on genetically modified foods? The NDP, which appears to be gaining momentum, is especially vulnerable in that area since a photo of Mulcair appeared on Twitter posing with anti-GMO activists. (Mulcair holds a T-shirt that says, “GMOs – just label it!”) Such a policy would be complicated and expensive.
Farmers must have confidence that their government is developing policies based on sound research and science, not politics or ideology. Prairie voters have an excellent opportunity to encourage their leaders to commit to that.
