Canadians went to the polls Monday after a national campaign that began on March 23rd. In Northern New York, expectations of strained relations and a continued trade war remain.
Canada is a parliamentary democracy, which means voters choose members of Parliament and the leader of the winning party becomes Prime Minister. As of Tuesday morning, the Liberals won 168 seats, Conservatives 144, Bloc Quebecois 23, NDP 7 and Greens 1, and it remained uncertain whether the Liberal Party would be in the majority or must form a minority government.
SUNY Plattsburgh Center for the Study of Canada Director Chris Kirkey explains why the tally is incomplete.
“There’s a variety of votes that have yet to be counted. In Canada they physically count every ballot,” Kirkey says. “Some of these are from advance polling and advance voting that took place that needs to be counted by Elections Canada officers. Part of it has to do with what they call Special Voting. Let’s say you’re a Canadian citizen and you’re outside of the country and you have to mail in your vote. And there’s still some ridings where maybe one or two polling stations still need to report. You know, it may take 24 or 48 hours but we’ll have some certainty as to the outcome fairly soon.”
Former Congressman Bill Owens, a Democrat who represented a New York district abutting the border, says the Liberals can thank President Trump for their victory.
“Probably the biggest factor was Mr. Trump. Both his comments about Canada becoming a state but also the tariffs. And now Mr. Carney is going to have to see what he can do with Mr. Trump,” Owens says.
During his victory speech, Prime Minister Mark Carney slammed the American president and reiterated previous statements that the cordial relationship between the countries is irreparably damaged.
“Our old relationship with the United States, a relationship based on steadily increasing integration, is over. We are over the shock of the American betrayal but we should never forget the lessons. We have to look out for ourselves,” Carney told supporters.
Owens does not anticipate a rapprochement in the short term.
“I was at a meeting last week with a significant number of Canadians including Jean Charest, who was the Prime Minister of Quebec, and they felt that this is going to take some time. The tariff problems could get solved, but the level of hurt and anger that Canadians feel because of Mr. Trump’s activities may take significantly longer to dissipate,” Owens says. “I don’t think we’re going to see a return of Canadians for recreation, for shopping in the near term.”
Kirkey notes anecdotal evidence in the North Country that Canadians are turning away from their southern neighbor.
“If you go around Plattsburgh these days for example, especially on the weekends, and you take a look at the number of Quebec plated vehicles which populate everything from shopping malls to gas stations to restaurants to hotels, the number has dropped precipitously,” Kirkey observes. “And there’s no reason right now for optimism in terms of seeing the return of the vibrant Quebec consumer coming down to the North Country be it Plattsburgh or Lake Placid or what have you. There’s just too much uncertainty that exists in the Canada – US relationship right now.”
The Plattsburgh and North Country region is home to a number of Canadian-based manufacturers and businesses, and Canadian retail trade is a key factor in the local economy.
