People's Party of Canada

People's Party of Canada Parti populaire du Canada
Name	People's Party of Canada
Abbreviation	PPC
Founded	2018-09-14
Founder	Maxime Bernier
Split from	Conservative Party of Canada
President	Maxime Bernier
Leader	Maxime Bernier
Location	Canada
Headquarters	Gatineau, Quebec
Areas served	Canada
Political position	Right-wing to far-right
Ideology	Alt-right ideology Anti-lockdown pseudoscience Anti-vaccination pseudoscience Canadian nationalism Classical liberalism Climate change denial Conservatism Conspiracy theories Discrimination Far-right Hatred Neoconservatism Neoliberalism Opposing vaccine mandates Opposing vaccine passports Right-wing populism Racism Right libertarianism Right-wing Xenophobia
Shared ideologies	Conservative Party of Canada (conservatism; economic liberalism; fiscal conservatism) People's Party of Canada (founded by, based on Maxime Bernier's ideology) Republican Party (United States: conservatism; centrism; extremism; neofascism; neoconservatism; libertarianism; right-wing populism) Cato Institute  (libertarianism) Charles Koch, Koch Family Foundations;  Koch Industries (libertarianism; neoconservatism; neoliberalism)
Website	PeoplesPartyOfCanada.ca

Background

The People's Party of Canada ("People's Party;" French: Parti populaire du Canada;  abbreviated PPC) is a federal political party in Canada. The People's Party of Canada was formed by Maxime Bernier in September 2018, shortly after his resignation from the Conservative Party of Canada. Bernier, a former Conservative Party leadership candidate and cabinet minister, was the People's Party of Canada's only Member of Parliament (MP) from its founding in 2018 to his defeat in the 2019 Canadian federal election. The PPC formed electoral district associations (EDAs) in 326 ridings, and ran candidates in 315 ridings, of Canada's total 338 ridings, in the 2019 federal election; however, no candidate was elected under its banner and Bernier lost his bid for personal re-election in Beauce. They ran 312 candidates in the 2021 Canadian federal election; none were elected to parliament, despite a gain in the popular vote to five percent.

The People's Party of Canada advocates for reduced immigration at 150,000 per year, scrapping the Multiculturalism Act, withdrawing from the Paris Climate Accord, and ending supply management. In the 2021 Canadian federal election, the PPC also ran in opposition to COVID-19 restrictions and lockdown measures,   vaccine passports, and . The People's Party of Canada has been described as classical liberal,   conservative,   libertarian,   nationalist, and populist - while being seen on the right-wing to far right of the traditional left-right political spectrum.

History

Formation

The People's Party of Canada was formed a few weeks after the resignation of Maxime Bernier, a former Conservative Party leadership candidate and cabinet minister, from the Conservative Party of Canada. In his resignation speech, Bernier stated that he was leaving because "I've come to realize ... this party is too intellectually and morally corrupt to be reformed." Bernier also stated that, under opposition leader Andrew Scheer (to whom Bernier finished runner-up in the 2017 Conservative Party leadership election), the Conservative party had abandoned its principles on issues including political correctness,   corporate welfare,   equalization reform, and supply management. In a op-ed, Bernier stated that his motive for forming the People's Party of Canada was to reverse the public choice dynamic in the Canadian political system resulting in vote-buying and pandering by political parties. He reiterated his belief that the Conservative Party could not be reformed to end this practice, and that a new political party was required.

Bernier was accused by prominent Conservative politicians, such as former Prime Ministers Stephen Harper and Brian Mulroney, of trying to divide the political right. He responded on the CBC television show Power & Politics that he wanted to focus on disaffected voters, and cited the political rise of French President Emmanuel Macron as an example. Bernier later cited the breakthrough of the People's Alliance of New Brunswick in the 2018 New Brunswick election, and the Coalition Avenir Québec win in 2018 Quebec elections as examples of voters' disdain for traditional political parties and expressing a desire for change by voting for new parties.

Prior to his resignation from the Conservative Party of Canada,   Maxime Bernier had begun reestablishing contact with individuals who had supported his 2017 Conservative leadership bid; they believed he had the necessary support to register a party with Elections Canada.   Le Devoir reported that members of seven Conservative constituency associations defected to the People's Party of Canada. A few days after announcing the People's Party of Canada name, Libertarian Party leader Tim Moen, who had previously offered the leadership of that party to Bernier, stated that he was open to the idea of a merger with the People's Party. When asked by Global News, Bernier indicated he had no interest in a merger. When asked about organizing by the People's Party of Canada, he mentioned that he would use tools that did not exist in the past, such as the use of social media.

Maxime Bernier planned to run candidates in all of Canada's 338 federal ridings in the 2019 Canadian federal election. The People's Party of Canada's registration documents were officially submitted to Elections Canada on October 10, 2018. In addition, he stated that electoral district associations (EDA) would be in place by December 31, 2018, and that the EDAs would start focusing on finding candidates starting in January 2019. On November 1, 2018, the People's Party of Canada revealed that it had over 30,000 "founding members." News sites later revealed that one of the PPC's founding members was a former American white nationalist, and that two others had ties to anti-immigration groups. The former white nationalist was removed from the People's Party of Canada on August 29, 2019, after his past came to light. A spokesperson for the People's Party of Canada stated that his past didn't come up during the vetting process since he came from the United States. The two other members denied having racist views and the People's Party of Canada later told Le Devoir that they did not have enough resources to vet them at the beginning of the PPC's formation.

In November 2018, Minister of Democratic Institutions   Karina Gould said that Maxime Bernier would qualify for debates hosted by the Leaders' Debates Commission, if the People's Party of Canada nominated candidates in 90 per cent of ridings.

The People's Party of Canada held rallies in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa-Gatineau, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, and Quebec City. In 2019, it held rallies in Hamilton, Saint John, and Halifax. On December 21, 2018, the People's Party of Canada established electoral district associations in all 338 electoral districts.

Registration

The People's Party of Canada received its eligibility status on November 11, 2018. The People's Party of Canada was registered by Elections Canada on January 19, 2019, after nominating candidates for by-elections in Outremont, York - Simcoe, and Burnaby South which were called for February 25, 2019, and Nanaimo - Ladysmith. In the February 25 by-elections, the People's Party of Canada received 10.9 per cent of the vote in Burnaby South and 1.5 per cent in each of York - Simcoe and Outremont.

Candidate Selections for the 2019 Canadian Federal Election

Maxime Bernier told the that the People's Party of Canada would start candidate nominations for the October general election after the by-elections. On March 25, 2019, Bernier announced in a press conference that the People's Party of Canada has opened an online search for candidates until April 23, with candidate selection meetings to follow between May 7 and 13. In an interview on the CTV television show Power Play, he said that the People's Party of Canada planned to have their first convention on June 1 to 2. The People's Party of Canada held their conference from August 18 to 19, where "roughly 500 party officials took part in door knocking workshops, traditional media and social media training, debate training and mock debate."

In April 2019, Angelo Isidorou, a party executive and the Vancouver Quadra district association president resigned, stating the People's Party of Canada was an "utter free-for-all" and had been "hijacked by egomaniacs." Isidorou was one of the earliest individuals to blow the whistle on internal racism within the People's Party of Canada. More resignations followed Isidorou and echoed accusations that the People's Party of Canada had been infiltrated by "racist, xenophobic, homophobic and downright hateful people." In July 2019, the entire People's Party of Canada board in Elmwood - Transcona publicly sent a resignation letter, claiming that "racists," "anti-Semites" and "conspiracy theorists" had taken over and were promoting "the closure of Canada's "physical and economic borders" and had "spread misinformation through personal and official channels." They cited disillusionment towards the People's Party of Canada's increasingly xenophobic nature and lack of focus towards economic discussion as their core reasons for resigning. Steven Fletcher, PPC candidate for Charleswood - St. James - Assiniboia - Headingley, rejected the accusation, claiming the action is rooted in vindictiveness against Bernier. The manager of the Elmwood - Transcona Facebook page responded to the criticism by stating "Our problem is not necessarily with Max Bernier himself, but the entire organization has deep-rooted problems." The Winnipeg South Centre electoral district associations argued that it was normal for a party to have "people with crazy ideas and racists" and wanted to know how the People's Party of Canada reacted to it. Fletcher disputed their statement, stating that "they'd be kicked out pretty fast" if they held any such viewpoints, and touted the diversity of the PPC's candidates. Fletcher claimed that "some elements of the NDP and the Green Party" have "anti-Semitic viewpoints" and that there was an "anti-Quebec vibe" in online forums from "people supporting Conservative Party of Canada leader Andrew Scheer. The PPC later told Global News that the removal of the white nationalist was an example of the People's Party of Canada taking a stand against racism.

In the 2019 Canadian federal election, Maxime Bernier lost his own seat to a Conservative, and no People's Party candidates were elected. Bernier was the only People's Party candidate to come even close to winning; he won 28.4 per cent of the vote (a 20-point drop from 2015), and no other candidate won more than four per cent of the vote. The People's Party of Canada received approximately 1.6 per cent of the popular vote nationwide. According to the Canadian Press, the PPC may have cost the Conservatives some ridings but did not garner enough votes to affect the overall result.

After the 2019 Canadian Federal Election

On February 24, 2020, Elections Canada deregistered 38 of the People's Party of Canada's   electoral district associations (EDAs) for failing to comply with reporting requirements. The deregistered EDAs will not be able to accept contributions or issue tax receipts, unless they remedy their status with Elections Canada and become re-registered. Two candidates, including Maxime Bernier ran for the Toronto Centre and York Centre by-election, following the resignations of Michael Levitt, and Bill Morneau. However, both candidates were unsuccessful in their campaign, garnering less than 3.6 per cent of the popular vote in each riding. Other EDAs have voluntarily deregistered.

2021 Federal Election

The PPC announced it would contest the 2021 Canadian federal election with the same platform it used in 2019 and Bernier running in his former riding of Beauce. The PPC also announced its opposition to further COVID-19 restrictions and lockdown measures, vaccine passports, and compulsory vaccinations as part of its campaign.

The PPC gained around 5% of the popular vote, an improvement on its 2019 result and surpassing the Green Party of Canada in terms of vote share, but the People's Party of Canada did not see any candidates elected.

Principles and Policies

Maxime Bernier stated that his party is "a coalition of people who are disenchanted with traditional politicians who say one thing one day, and another the next." He mentioned that his platform would be based around the principles of freedom, responsibility, fairness, and respect. Bernier has stated that these principles are non-negotiable, but that members would have input on policies as they are refined, and that a candidate questionnaire asks potential candidates about which policies they want in the platform.

In addition to these principles, the People's Party of Canada would advocate for "smart populism," which Bernier defines as "populism without emotions," speaking for "all Canadians," and not appeasing "special interest groups." Bernier has described the People's Party of Canada as a "grassroots party." He has also stated that the People's Party of Canada is neither left-wing or right-wing, but the difference between being free and not free. Bernier told Vassy Kapelos that the People's Party of Canada will debate discussions that "the leadership and the caucus" did not want to have while he was a Conservative Party of Canada member, also stating that people who espouse racist, antisemitic, or xenophobic positions "are not welcome" in the People's Party of Canada. A spokesperson has stated that the People's Party of Canada does not debate the science of climate change. Labels used to describe the People's Party of Canada include "classical liberal," "conservative," "libertarian," "nationalist," and "populist;" it is generally seen as being on the right-wing to far right of the political spectrum.

At the time of its formation, the People's Party of Canada indicated that its formal platform would be gradually unveiled, but it would generally follow the platform that Bernier ran on during his 2017 Conservative leadership campaign.] Bernier stated that the platform "will be built on facts." He said that socially conservative policies such as abortion, and gender identity would not be part of the People's Party of Canada platform.

The People's Party of Canada supports removing trade barriers between Canada's provinces.

Economy

Prominent platform planks include ending corporate welfare, and phasing out supply management over a number of years to allow farmers to adapt through compensation yet "save Canadians billions of dollars annually" through lower prices. Following the launch of the People's Party of Canada, Maxime Bernier stated in a TV interview with BNN Bloomberg that the telecom industry deregulation, increasing airline competition, reducing tax brackets, and having a discussion about the privatization of Canada Post, which were key components of his original 2017 Conservative Party of Canada leadership platform, are all areas that he has an interest in.

Environment

The People's Party of Canada's platform states that "it is an undisputed fact that the world's climate has always changed and will continue to change" but rejects what it calls "climate change alarmism." The People's Party of Canada plans to withdraw from the global warming fight, withdraw from the Paris Climate Accord, abolish subsidies for green technology, expand the oil and gas industries, scrap "the Liberal government's carbon tax," but allow the private sector and the provinces to address climate issues, and "invest mitigation strategies" if negative effects result from climate change. The People's Party of Canada's main focus would be on "implementing practical solutions to make Canada's air, water and soil cleaner."

Foreign Affairs

The People's Party of Canada platform argues that foreign policies should be "focused on the security and prosperity of Canadians, not an ideological approach that compromises our interests." The People's Party of Canada supports multilateralism,   ,   free trade, and humanitarianism. However, it plans to not get involved in foreign conflicts "unless we have a compelling strategic interest in doing so," to reduce Canada's United Nations presence "to a minimum," withdraw from UN commitments the People's Party of Canada sees as threatening "our sovereignty," to accept free trade agreements that protect Canada's economy "from the threat of potentially hostile foreign investors," and phase out development aid.

Health Care

The People's Party of Canada's platform states "it is up to the provinces to implement reforms in line with the more efficient and less costly mixed universal systems of other developed countries. Throwing more federal money at the problem is not the right approach."] They plan to replace the Canada Health Transfer with "transfer of tax points of equivalent value to the provinces and territories" by giving up the Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue collected by the federal government while creating a temporary program "to compensate poorer provinces" disadvantage from the replacement. The People's Party of Canada claims this would create the conditions for provincial and territorial governments to innovate while maintaining the Canada Health Act.

Maxime Bernier and the PPC are opposed to vaccination mandates and support the lifting of pandemic restrictions.

Immigration

The People's Party of Canada plans immigration reform, such as limiting immigration to no more than 150,000 people per year, by removing the parents and grandparents class from the family reunification program, focusing on economic immigration through the reform of the immigration point system, making temporary foreign workers noncompetitive with "Canadian workers," and banning birth tourism. They intend that all immigrants would undergo in-person interviews with immigration officials to determine whether their values and ideas accord with Canadian "societal norms." The People's Party of Canada would declare the entire border a port of entry to make deportation easier, since new arrivals can be refused at ports of entry. They would build border fences at popular ports of entry crossings for migrants, rely on private sponsorship instead of government support for funding new refugees, but prioritize those "belonging to persecuted groups barred from neighbouring countries" and sexual minorities.

Multiculturalism

The People's Party of Canada platform advocates for the cultural integration of immigrants, stating that it "enriches" Canadian society; in particular, the People's Party of Canada criticized that the government "has pursued a policy of official multiculturalism that encourages immigrants to keep the values and culture they left behind instead of integrating into Canadian society and adopting Canadian values and culture." Some of the examples that they have listed as "distinct values of a contemporary Western civilization" are "equality between men and women," "separation of state and religion," "toleration and pluralism." The People's Party of Canada classified Justin Trudeau's comments referring to Canada as "the first post-national state, with no core identity" as a "cult of diversity." The People's Party of Canada opposes the Canadian Multiculturalism Act, remarking that Canada's government should not help immigrants preserve their cultural heritage. The People's Party of Canada intends to "repeal the Multiculturalism Act and eliminate all funding to promote multiculturalism."

Veterans

The People's Party of Canada platform argues that "The government of Canada has an obligation to honour the nation's sacred commitment to our military men and women and make sure our veterans receive the support they deserve." They plan to "enshrine in legislation the country's obligations to our veterans in a Military Covenant," reinstate fair military disability pensions and reemphasize the legislative guarantee of the "benefit of doubt" standard in the Pension Act, review the New Veterans Charter to determine which policies and programs should be retained, simplify the system and make it easier to navigate.

Electoral Results

Smear Campaign Against Maxime Bernier and People's Party of Canada

Summary: Project Cactus was a politically motivated, Conservative Party of Canada sponsored smear campaign targeting People's Party of Canada leader Maxime Bernier. The project was contracted to Warren Kinsella's   Daisy Consulting Group  [Daisy Group; local copy  |  Warren Kinsella biography], which developed and ran Project Cactus.

Note that the URL for Daisy Group - http://daisygroup.ca/ - uses the unsecure "http://...", not the secure "https://..." (which throws the warning shown in the screenshot, below) - likely so that the owner can surveil visitors to the website.


Insecure "https://daisygroup.ca/" URL.

Additional Reading

At first glance, the 2021 Canadian federal election appears to have changed very little. Each party was returned to the House of Commons with about as many seats as it had previously held.

Beneath the surface, however, some shifts occurred. Most notably, while the People's Party of Canada (PPC) failed to win any seats, its share of the popular vote grew to five per cent - more than double what it earned two years earlier.

The PPC's support is small yet not easily dismissed. The 841,000 votes it earned makes it the fifth most popular party in the country, well ahead of the Greens (who have appeared on the ballot, addressing the prominent issue of climate change,  for decades). The People's Party won three times more votes than the Reform Party of Canada did when it first fielded candidates in 1988, one election prior to its breakthrough in 1993.

Understanding exactly what to make of the PPC's growing support is especially important for the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada. If PPC voters are former Conservative supporters disappointed with the party's attempt to appeal to middle-of-the-road, suburban Canadians, it signals a serious dilemma - each voter the Conservatives gain by moving to the centre could be matched by a right-leaning voter lost to the PPC.

PPC Voters Bemoan "Loss of Freedom"

What, then, do we know about People's Party of Canada (PPC) voters? At first glance, our fall 2021 survey shows PPC voters have the profile many would expect. They're dissatisfied with the way things are going in our country today, feel the economy is getting weaker, think there are too many immigrants coming to Canada who don't adopt the country's values and hold a favourable opinion of the United States.

Yet these opinions do not really set them apart. Most Conservative Party supporters also hold these views. What does distinguish current PPC voters is their views on the COVID-19 pandemic, and specifically on the issue of vaccination, vaccine mandates and vaccine passports.

Our survey, conducted during the 2021 election campaign, asked Canadians to identify the most important problem facing the country today. Both Liberal Party of Canada and Conservative Party of Canada supporters were most likely to mention the COVID-19 pandemic in general. Climate change was most likely to be mentioned as the most important problem by NDP, Bloc Québécois and Green Party supporters.

But for People's Party of Canada (PPC) supporters, the No. 1 issue was the loss of freedom stemming from vaccine mandates - a concern barely mentioned by anyone who supported other parties.

A more rigorous analysis of the survey results, which tests the significance of different factors while holding others constant, confirms the importance of vaccination issues to current PPC voters.

Someone who singled out "loss of freedom" during the pandemic as the most important issue facing the country had a 59 per cent chance of supporting the PPC, compared to only a five per cent chance for someone who mentioned any other issue.

Similarly, someone who singled out "COVID-19 vaccination issues" as the most important issue facing the country had a 44 per cent chance of supporting the PPC, compared to a six per cent chance for someone who mentioned any other issue.

Immigration Not a Decisive Factor

This last example, furthermore, likely underestimates the impact of People's Party of Canada (PPC) voters' irritation with vaccination requirements. It can be assumed that the very few number of Liberals who also singled out "COVID-19 vaccination issues" as the most important issue probably had something very different in mind - perhaps frustration with those who won't get vaccinated - than their PPC counterparts.

Nonetheless, the main point is clear: voters concerned about the push to be vaccinated and what they perceive as a loss of freedom during the pandemic were much more likely to vote PPC than voters concerned about anything else.

Equally important is the finding that PPC voters stand out much less for their attitudes on immigration. The impact of immigration views on someone's likelihood of supporting the PPC is barely significant, in stark contrast to their opinions on vaccination.

This does not mean that PPC voters are strong supporters of immigration; rather, it means simply that their views on the subject do not differentiate supporters of the PPC from supporters of some other parties - notably, the Conservatives.

Incidentally, it should be noted these findings apply only to Canadians indicating they intended to vote for the PPC, not to the party's leadership, organizers or funders who may regard closing our borders to newcomers as more of a priority.

A message for Conservatives

Nonetheless, the fact that the growth in People's Party of Canada (PPC) support is tied to the unusual issue of vaccination against COVID-19 is no guarantee that the party's popularity will fade once the pandemic ends. Other issues may come along to take its place.

But it does send a cautionary note to Conservatives who might be wondering what the party can do to bring PPC voters back into the fold. Rejecting new policies on climate change or social diversity is unlikely to help so long as PPC supporters continue to be motivated largely by a single issue - their opposition to vaccines.

As the election outcome itself showed, showing flexibility on vaccine mandates in order to win back defectors to the PPC risks putting more distance between the Conservative Party of Canada and the mainstream of Canadian public opinion.

In short, PPC voters were not simply typical Conservative Party supporters leaning furthest to the right on a range of issues that include government spending, taxation, climate change and immigration. They were, on average, a unique cluster of voters who have rejected the overwhelming public consensus on the need to be vaccinated to contain the spread of COVID-19.

The growth potential for the Conservative Party lies not in chasing the small number of voters angered by vaccine mandates, but in appealing to the much larger pool of voters whose top priorities include bringing the pandemic to an end and refocusing attention on the fight against climate change.

People's Party of Canada Leader Maxime Bernier hasn't always been a fan of the Canadian media. But he's never advocated for them to be killed. One of his former candidates, however, has posted something on Facebook that might have some journalists scratching their heads. Marcella Desjarlais uses her Facebook page to protest the mandatory masking of children.

This weekend, she posted an Internet meme mentioning that journalists were put to death following the Nuremberg trials for lying to the public. Then she added this comment: "Should happen again!" The post was taken down on October 3, 2021.

Desjarlais is also known as Marcella Williams, and ran under this name for the People's Party of Canada in the 2021 Canadian federal election. She came fourth in Burnaby South with 3.3 percent of the vote in a riding retained by NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh. Below, you can see some of the discussion on social media that followed her now-deleted post.

Canada's multiculturalism policies make it appear Canadians could be immune to populism. Could a country committed to preserving and enhancing its multicultural heritage be seduced by populism, so often associated with nativism and nationalism? Even though the People's Party of Canada (PPC) failed to win a single seat in the recent federal election, it still tripled its share of the popular vote. That requires a serious discussion about contemporary Canadian populism, since it's posing risks to the tenor of Canadian politics and the unity of the country.

First we need to clarify what's actually meant by the term populism  [see also populism]. Often conflated with its far-right proponents, populism in Canada has historically allowed its adherents to gain visibility on the political stage. Populism, as a strategy, gave rise to parties like Social Credit that was particularly popular in Saskatchewan and Alberta, and made personalities of people like William Aberhart, the first Social Credit premier of Alberta, and former Reform Party of Canada leader Preston Manning.

Over the course of Canadian history, populism has been associated with a wide variety of ideologies - from socialism to neoliberalism, represented by parties ranging from the progressive, socialist Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) founded in the 1930s to the right-wing, western Canada-based Reform Party of Canada. Populism's foundation is the opposition between ostensibly moral citizens and corrupt elites.

During the 2021 Canadian federal election, populism was clearly associated with the anti-vax movement, and linked mostly to the People's Party of Canada (PPC), led by former Conservative Party of Canada cabinet minister Maxime Bernier.

While the PPC only got five per cent of the popular vote (842,969 ballots), that was a marked increase from the 1.6 per cent it won in the 2019 election. The party received more than half its votes in Ontario and Québec. The PPC platform draws on the supposed divide between Canadians and corrupt establishment parties or bureaucrats.

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