The new May/Dion politics

The emerging dynamic of friendship between Elizabeth May’s Green Party and Stéphane Dion’s Liberals, who are hardly natural allies, has been one of the most intriguing developments of the 2008 election campaign.
It was strikingly illustrated by the controversy surrounding May’s inclusion in the federal leaders’ debates. On the one side, Stephen Harper and Jack Layton – strange bedfellows if ever there were – ganging up and threatening boycotts to bar May from joining them on stage. On the other, Dion in the role of high-minded statesman, bucking the current and charging to May’s defence, publicly insisting she be invited and accusing the other two leaders of a petty and self-serving affront to democracy. This, moreover, despite the grave risk that May could lure votes away from the Liberals. In the world of Canadian politics, such a turn of events would seem counterintuitive at best, and yet might in fact be a sign of things to come should Dion and May do well in the elections. What does May’s inclusion mean for the overall race? Anyone who has ever seen the Green leader speak can attest to her impressive oratorical skills, her wide breadth of knowledge, and her sheer passion for political argument. But while most people would agree that she is a threat, it remains to be seen who has the most to fear from her. On the one hand, those on the Left are all too aware of the danger of vote splitting between the four parties. A strong showing by May on election day draining crucial votes away from the Liberals and NDP, could clear the path for a Harper government.
The second possibility is that her participation in the debate will allow her and Dion to keep the focus squarely on environmental issues – right where Harper and Layton don’t want it to be.
Forcing Harper to explain his environmental policies will damage his credibility irreparably, freeing erstwhile Conservative supporters to vote Green or even Liberal. Of the two possibilities, the latter is far more likely. May and Dion share many similar policies, including the Green Shift tax, and May has publicly stated her preference for Dion as Prime minister over Harper. The first signs of cooperation became evident in April 2007, when the Liberals agreed to abstain from running a candidate in May’s riding of Central Nova. In exchange, May agreed to endorse Dion for Prime minister. It was a remarkable moment; one which, in the words of Elizabeth May, aimed to “leave behind the knee-jerk tribal partisanship of a worn-out political establishment.”
In finding common cause with the Liberals and recognizing the urgency of electing a government sensitive to the crisis of climate change, May and Dion sought to put principle (“and the planet”) above narrow partisan interests – in short, to do politics differently. The message has not gone unnoticed. In the Sept. 10 issue of the Globe and Mail, former Tory Prime Minister Joe Clark called May “a significant voice for change,” drawing parallels between May’s discourse and Barack Obama’s in the United States. Both, says Clark, represent “the outsider, the person the party establishments sought to exclude; the person with a message that resonates with citizens who’ve grown cynical about, or disaffected from, their political system.” From Dion’s agreement with May to his push to have her included in the debates, he has put environmental concerns above the narrow interests of his party, and has emerged looking all the more honourable for it. More importantly, Dion and May – and not Layton – have emerged as the true candidates for a new form of politics. Should their investment pay dividends, Canadians may soon be faced with a period of great political upheaval indeed.
In the joint press release announcing the May-Dion agreement, the leaders asserted that a Dion-led government would “work well with a Green Caucus of MPs, led by Elizabeth May.” This has led some to see a potential seat waiting for May within a future Liberal government (presumably the environment portfolio).
Taken together, a Liberal-Green alliance of sorts has the potential to dramatically polarize the face of Canadian politics. Whether Canadians will accept Dion’s (and May’s) wager, however, remains to be seen.