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The first in what I hope will become a series. Set in 1997, Prime Minister Charest is attempting to lead the Progressive Conservatives to their fourth straight Election Victory against Liberal Leader Paul Martin.


This is my first attempt at a TL, so please bare with me, I'm new to this :eek:


Prime Minister “Optimistic” as Campaign Begins
May 8th, 1997| CBC.ca


Ottawa – Prime Minister Jean Charest sounded jubilant when asked about his government’s chances for re-election today, saying that he believed “Canadians will see through the promises of the Opposition parties”. Following his meeting with the Governor General, Election Day is slated for what many believe will be June 12, and the Governing Conservatives are attempting to pull off an electoral victory not seen since 1972, when then-Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau led the Liberals to its fourth straight victory in a row. Much the same as the Liberals of 1972, Jean Charest’s Progressive Conservatives will face an uphill battle against a formidable opponent, in this case in the form of Liberal Leader Paul Martin.​

Martin, who replaced former Cabinet Minister Jean Chretien following the Liberals disappointing showing in the last election, kicked off his Campaign with an event in Montreal where he slammed the Prime Minister for what he called policy’s which were “failing Quebecers and Canadians”. With polls showing the Liberals with a commanding lead in the province as well as nationwide, many expect this to be the Liberals best chance of ending 13 years of Tory rule.

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Liberals take Early Lead; Polls Suggest
May 8th, 1997|CBC.ca


Quebec – Paul Martin spent the first day of the campaign slamming Prime Minister Charest’s handling of the economy, pointing to a recently released survey indicating an increase in the National Unemployment. Martin pointed to his experience as CEO of the Canadian Shipping Lines as an example of his ability to create jobs. Martin, who succeeded Jean Chretien three years ago, says that the Liberals are the only party to offer a credible jobs plan, reminding voters that under the PC government the deficit has been increasing dramatically, especially these past few years.​

Early polling suggests the strategy is succeeding, with the Liberals having a 9-point edge on the Conservatives, 39% to 30% respectively.​

When asked about the results, the Prime Minister suggested that the polls he saw suggested a much tighter race before being escorted away by security.​

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Polls Show Bad news for Reform; Goods news for PCs
May 9th, 1997| CBC.ca


Ottawa – With an election a little more than a month away, Preston Manning and the Reform party are planning on pulling out all the stops this campaign, all in the hopes of reversing sliding poll numbers that appear to suggest Western conservatives have begun to float back to the Governing PCs. Manning, who decided to prop up the Charest government following the Minority result handed him last election, has received a lot of criticism these last few years, particularly from his own supporters, who claim he has sold the party out to the Government at the expense of the West. Although Manning has been able to maintain his seat count from the last election, there have been numerous instances of Reform MP’s criticizing Manning’s leadership style, with more than one MP threatening to resign.​

Although the Reform Party is entering the Campaign on a more united front, criticizing the Government for what they describe as “abandoning the West”, polls show the party bleeding support to the PC’s. While many pundits point to this as good news for Jean Charest, they point out that for the most part Paul Martins Liberals still have the advantage going into this Election Campaign.


Poll:
Liberals – 39%
PC – 30%
NDP – 12%
Reform – 10%
Bloc – 9%

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