Abbas Rana | National Newswatch

Trudeau told Liberals’ national board of directors ‘it looks like’ a spring election, according to a Liberal source, but Grits say it will happen based on important conditions

Jan 11 2021 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose Liberals are enjoying a comfortable lead in public opinion polls, told members of the party’s national board of directors before Christmas that “it looks like” the next election would happen this spring, said one source, but other sources say a spring election will only happen if the vaccine rollout is […]

Next election a referendum on Trudeau’s handling of COVID-19, and which party has the ‘most compelling blueprint for the future,’ say political players

Dec 14 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — The next federal election will be a referendum on Justin Trudeau’s management of the COVID-19 crisis, and a chance for Canadians to evaluate which party has “the most compelling blueprint for the future” after the once-in-a-century crisis is over, say pollsters. “It’s gonna come down to what the facts are on the ground,” said Darrell […]

Trudeau needs strong messaging, ‘coherent plan’ for rollout of vaccine, or he could suffer political consequences, say veteran political players

Dec 7 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — As the second wave of COVID-19 continues to grow, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government needs to put out strong messaging, backed up by a “coherent plan” to articulate the rollout phase for a vaccine, say veteran political players. Senior cabinet ministers giving different dates for the first availability of the vaccine is creating “confusion” and […]

‘That’s a tough one’: potential prolonged delay in COVID-19 vaccines for Canadians would be politically ‘explosive’ for Trudeau Liberals, say politicos

Nov 30 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — If there’s a prolonged gap between when Americans and Canadians get the COVID-19 vaccine, it would become a politically “explosive” issue for the Liberals, raising serious questions about the basic competence of the Trudeau government, potentially costing it the next federal election, say political players. “It’s become a national party game to ridicule the United […]

When it comes to dissenting female MPs and dissenting white male MPs, Trudeau’s got a double standard, says former Grit MP Caesar-Chavannes

Nov 23 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has one set of rules for dissenting female MPs who suffer the consequences if they take a stand on their principles, and another for white male MPs who get away without facing any consequences, says outspoken former Black Liberal MP Celina Caesar-Chavannes who left the Liberal caucus and didn’t run in […]

Liberal MPs expect Biden to revive ‘mature, working relationship’ with Canada after four years of ‘chaotic’ Trump, Sgro slams Trump’s lack of concession: ‘democracy has spoken’

Nov 16 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — Incoming U.S. Democratic president-elect Joe Biden is expected to revive a “predictable” and “mature relationship” between Canada and the U.S., which will be a stark contrast to outgoing U.S. Republican President Donald Trump, who still won’t concede he lost the presidential election and who, over the last four years, has shocked and threatened allies around […]

‘Choose your poison’ is Trudeau’s dilemma if he wants to decide timing of next election, say pollsters

Nov 2 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — With the Christmas season fast approaching and the country in the midst of the second wave of COVID-19, pundits say it’s highly unlikely now that there will be an election this fall, but say that picking a time for the next federal election is like choosing “poison,” with each timeframe carrying its own pitfalls. “This […]

O’Toole can’t keep promise to return election rebates to Conservative riding associations if there’s a fall or spring federal election, but he will next time

Oct 12 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole won’t be able to keep his leadership campaign promise to return candidates’ election rebates the party received in 2019 back to the riding associations, the chair of the Conservative Fund told associations across the country, because of the possibility of a fall or spring election. James Dodds, the newly appointed chair […]

Maverick Party to target 49 strong Conservative ridings in Western Canada in the next election, ‘where Conservatives won by very wide margins,’ says Hill

Oct 5 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — The upstart right-of-centre Maverick Party will try to target 49 ridings in the next election that the Conservatives won with wide margins in 2019, in an offensive that the party’s leader says won’t risk losing seats to the NDP or Liberals. In an interview with The Hill Times, Jay Hill, the interim leader of the […]

‘It’s much lonelier’: MPs talk about doing politics in the age of the pandemic

Sep 28 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — Backbench MPs say the global pandemic has turned doing retail politics on its head, say the legislative job is much lonelier without all the human interaction on the Hill and in the ridings, and some even say pressing the flesh could be off bounds forever. Liberal MP Judy Sgro (Humber River-Black Creek, Ont.) and other […]

Conservative Party finalize nomination rules for its 217 unheld ridings

Sep 27 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — The Conservative Party on Saturday has finalized the nomination rules for the 217 unheld ridings for the next federal election, which could be held amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Anticipating that it might not be possible to hold in-person meetings in the vast majority of ridings across the country, the party has decided to let members […]

Liberal tilt left could have electoral consequences for NDP, say pollsters

Sep 21 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — The Liberals may use the upcoming Throne Speech to signal a tilt to the political left and try to consolidate support among progressive voters, but while political insiders say that could cause big problems for the NDP, a veteran New Democrat MP says his party is not worried. In an interview with The Hill Times, […]

Trudeau Liberals risk leaving ideological centre open by tilting further to the left in Throne Speech, say some Grit MPs

Sep 14 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals are expected to tilt further to the left in their high-stakes Sept. 23 Throne Speech, but some MPs and former candidates say they’re nervous that would leave an opening in the ideological centre, home to most Canadian voters and where the Conservatives can make gains in the next federal election. […]

Ontario MPP Baber, former senior staffer Lantsman, and former candidate Willson said to be eyeing Conservative nomination in York Centre

Aug 31 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — The yet-to-be-scheduled byelection in York Centre is shaping up to be a high profile contest with prominent Conservative and Liberal figures testing the waters for seeking their party’s nomination in the GTA riding. In interviews with The Hill Times, Conservative sources mentioned the names of former senior Conservative Hill staffer and media pundit Melissa Lantsman; […]

‘This is absolutely no way to treat a minister’; some Liberals decry anti-Morneau leak campaign

Aug 24 2020 — Abbas Rana — Hill Times — Bill Morneau deserved a dignified exit from politics, and the alleged government leaks about the outgoing finance minister have “normalized” leaking damaging information to the media, which will have a chilling effect on the willingness of cabinet ministers to offer their frank opinion on public policy issues in the future, say some Liberal MPs, staffers […]

Articles by Abbas Rana