Will Trudeau’s attempt to woo soft Conservatives work?
Posted October 13, 2015 11:34 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Liberal leader Justin Trudeau is using the final days of this campaign to try and woo soft Conservatives.
“We don’t need to convince them to leave the Conservative party. We just need to show how Stephen Harper’s party has left them,” Trudeau has said.
But will that approach actually be effective?
Given supporters of the more moderate wing of the Conservative party — the old Progressive Conservatives — haven’t had a place to properly call home since the merger with the Canadian Alliance in 2003, UBC political scientist David Moscrop says their votes could definitely be up for grabs.
“It seems like the logical end of a long-term shift in momentum in [the Liberals’] favour. The question is do they have enough time to really capitalize on it. At the moment, it seems like it could be the case. But there’s still six days to go, and a lot could change.”
Moscrop says many moderates have already been driven from the party.
“I wasn’t surprised at all because the Liberals have been trending up for quite awhile. But it did confirm the fact that they’re feeling confident about their momentum,” he tells us.
Moscrop admits he’s been surprised by the Justin Trudeau’s campaign, and didn’t expect the Liberals to be doing as well in the polls as they are.
He adds when this campaign began, he never thought the Liberals would be campaigning so hard in Conservative-held ridings in the final week.
