What will you be doing on Oct. 19? Perhaps voting in a federal election—that is, if the much-ballyhooed fixed-date section of the Canada Elections Act is followed.
There’s increasing speculation, however, that Prime Minister Stephen Harper may send Canadians to the polls perhaps as early as this spring.
Why the early call? Some pundits say the government wants to get ahead of any embarrassing revelations that might come out during the impending trial of former Tory senator Mike Duffy and all the shenanigans surrounding his expense claims.
The impact of falling oil prices on federal coffers also could prompt Mr. Harper’s decision to dissolve Parliament. The government already has put off tabling its budget until at least April so it can better crunch the numbers.
Although oil prices have shown signs of recovering over the past few days, the Tories may opt not to release a budget at all—instead calling an election to seek a fresh mandate from the people to guide the country through these tough economic times.
Certainly the last thing the Tories want is the oil price collapse to derail the minimal surplus and various tax-friendly schemes they were set to conveniently unveil in the lead-up to an election this fall.
Wait a minute? Isn’t preventing governments from calling a snap election for political gain precisely what the fixed election date was supposed to do?
Hmmm. And they wonder why voters have become so cynical.
By pushing for fixed election dates, Mr. Harper hoped to—and succeeded in—scoring major political points. Whether he’ll risk the inevitable fallout for breaking his own law remains to be seen.
Hopefully he does. That way, the fixed election date will be revealed for the sham it is—and not worth the paper it’s written on.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
