Quote:
Originally Posted by Dion
Are you suggesting the comparisons to 2004 are wrong?
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I think there's a major difference: the Martin Liberals had control of the center of the Canadian political spectrum, and chose to give it up to move left, yielding the center-right (and arguably the absolute center) to the Tories.
Here, the PCs are claiming the center of the Alberta political spectrum, at a time when the balance of power in the province is becoming more centrist.
The Cretien Grits were brilliant at holding the center and doing enough fiscally to reach out to the right and enough socially to reach out to the left. They typically figured out who their biggest rival was and then edged in that direction to crush them.
A centrist party should be able to rule Alberta for a long time, if they're smart; they can move right just enough in the next election to sap any Wildrose momentum, at the same time using fear of the WRA to retain most of their center-left support.