As Manitoba Progressive Conservatives get closer to picking a new leader, they would be well advised to think about Normandy, D-Day and the missteps of a previous leader five years go.
Many Manitobans will know that world leaders are flocking to France this week to mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, a pivotal moment in the Second World War. Those leaders include Manitoba’s premier, Wab Kinew.
It’s unclear how many of those same Manitobans remember that during this same week in 2019, former PC premier Brian Pallister travelled to France to attend the 75th anniversary of the D-Day invasion and in so doing, authored what was perhaps the most-infamous gaffe of his gaffe-filled time as Manitoba’s first minister.
A small Canadian flag on Juno Beach on the 75th D-Day Anniversary in Courseulles-Sur-Mer, France on June 6, 2019. (Sean Kilpatrick / The Canadian Press files)
In a move that stunned both critics and loyalists, Pallister skipped the main event on June 6 at Juno Beach, a memorial that included many of the last surviving Canadian soldiers who took part in the invasion. A spokesperson eventually claimed the premier had instead laid a wreath at the Canadian memorial at Vimy, an odd choice given that he was in France at taxpayers’ expense to celebrate a pivotal event in the Second World War, and battle at Vimy took place during the First World War.
Later, Pallister’s people would admit he skipped D-Day events to socialize with executives from Roquette, a French company that built a pea processing plant near Portage la Prairie. After, he and his wife Esther enjoyed a few additional days of vacation.
Why is this cringeworthy moment in Manitoba political history relevant now?
As we speak, PC party officials are working diligently to pave the way for a leadership convention next April. Although it’s still 10 months away, party members are engaged in an intensive consultation to define their values and brand before they pick their next leader.
And even though the D-Day debacle is already five years old, it remains a potent reminder of what can happen to a party when it — deliberately or inadvertently — picks the wrong leader.
Although Pallister won back-to-back majorities in 2016 and 2019, his time in office was full of blunders and missteps that fulfilled some of the worst fears some senior party members had when he assumed the leadership in 2012.
The problem was, back then nobody else wanted the job. So, even though there were long-standing concerns about Pallister’s tendency to ignore advice and his propensity to do and say the wrong things, the party had little choice but to put its faith in him.
The D-Day debacle and other controversies that dogged Pallister through his time as first minister are proof enough that the party’s faith was not rewarded.
That remains the No. 1 leadership-process lesson coming out of the Pallister experience: acclamations are bad for a political party’s long-term fortunes. When you don’t have a competitive race with multiple candidates offering an array of views, you miss an opportunity to revitalize the membership and earn tons of free media coverage.
Pallister is not alone in offering lessons to the PC party on how not to hold a leadership race. Heather Stefanson, Pallister’s successor, forged her own cautionary tale about how to mess up a leadership process and hurt your own party in the process.
After Pallister was summarily forced out of the party in the summer of 2021 for dragging it down in public opinion polls, the Tories rushed to convene a fall leadership vote. Anticipating Pallister’s departure, Stefanson and her supporters pushed through changes to the process that shortened the runway to organize, raised the financial bar to enter and otherwise made it nearly impossible for anyone else to run against her.
Veterans takes part in the D-Day 75th Anniversary Canadian National Commemorative Ceremony at Juno Beach in Courseulles-Sur-Mer, France on June 6, 2019. (Sean Kilpatrick / The Canadian Press files)
In the end, former MP Shelly Glover would enter the race and it was close at the end. But only because Glover had recruited a whack of extreme right-wing supporters that wanted to push the party to the very fringes of conservatism.
In retrospect, it seemed inevitable that after having been the author of so many dirty tricks during the leadership campaign, Stefanson would prove to be a bust. Like her predecessor, Stefanson seemed oblivious to the input of all but a small cadre of lackeys, and demonstrated questionable work ethic and courage when it came to the painful but necessary work needed to rebuild the PC brand in the post-Pallister years.
Despite having nearly three years to chart a different course, Stefanson seemed to be satisfied to lead her party into jaws of political disaster with a campaign in last fall’s provincial election that set new standards for toxicity.
The Pallister and Stefanson catastrophes should be motivation enough for the party to organize a better leadership process that attracts a broader range of candidates in a way that is fair and accessible.
However, if Tories need additional inspiration to get things right, over the next several days they can study all of the photos of Premier Wab Kinew as he lays wreaths and shakes hands on the beaches of Normandy.
And in so doing, they will realize that they need to find a leader with the same work ethic and political instincts.
dan.lett@winnipegfreepress.com
Dan Lett
Columnist
Dan Lett is a columnist for the Free Press, providing opinion and commentary on politics in Winnipeg and beyond. Born and raised in Toronto, Dan joined the Free Press in 1986. Read more about Dan.
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