Landry on Leadership Bid

30 janvier 2019 – Times & Transcript ‘It’s looking good for me’: Landry on leadership bid ADAM HURAS LEGISLATURE BUREAU Veteran Liberal MLA Denis Landry says he’s poised to become the interim leader of the provincial Liberals, believing he’s secured the support needed to be picked by his colleagues. The longest serving member of the Liberal caucus, who represents a riding in the Acadian Peninsula, says he has the support of 12 of his colleagues, more than half of caucus. Political scientists say the selection would put a steady hand on the wheel, although it doesn’t help the party’s visibility in southern New Brunswick where it has struggled to get votes. “Two of my colleagues called me yesterday telling me they will support me,” Landry said in an interview , noting that there are 12 of 19 whose support he is sure of. “It’s looking good for me,” he said. The Liberal caucus has 21 members, but Edmundston-Madawaska Centre MLA Jean-Claude D’Amours, the current Liberal caucus chair, and outgoing leader Brian Gallant are not expected to vote, Landry said. The Liberal caucus will select an interim leader at a meeting of its MLAs on Feb. 12. Jacques LeBlanc, rookie MLA for Shediac-Beaubassin-Cap-Pelé and the former mayor of Shediac, previously told Brunswick News he was contemplating a bid. Meanwhile, it remains unclear if Dieppe MLA Roger Melanson will put his name forward. Landry said he had other opportunities to play a bigger role within the party, declining an invite to run “on a golden plate” ahead of the 2015 national election. He only decided recently that he wanted to play a bigger role, he said, after discussing it with his wife. 30 janvier 2019 – Times & Transcript “She said to me that it was the first time in a long time that she saw that sparkle in my eye.” Landry used a caucus call earlier this month to first announce his intentions and has since spoken to each of his colleagues individually. “It’s a caretaker role who needs to know the functioning of the legislature,” Mount Allison University political scientist Mario Levesque said.“And (Landry) does, he’s been around enough and has been in some senior portfolios.” J.P. Lewis, a political scientist at the University of New Brunswick in Saint John, added “this is the type of post where you want someone experienced with deep roots in the party.” Landry was first elected in 1995. He was a cabinet minister in two governments, overseeing the Transportation, Natural Resources, and Justice and Public Safety top posts. However, he is from the province’s north, where the Liberals already dominate. The party was nearly shut out in the south, holding just one out of 11 seats in and around the Port City. “ It’s a perfectly good question to ask,” said Université de Moncton political science professor Roger Ouellette about whether the interim leader should be from the southern part of the province. He added he’s surprised that Melanson’s name has yet to surface as a southeastern candidate in either the interim or leadership race. But Ouellette said that, above all, the interim leader must be a seasoned veteran who can keep the status quo in Fredericton. Landry said that as transportation minister he was seen all over the province, a move he vows to duplicate. “I want to be equitable to all of the regions of the province,” he said. “I want to hear why we lost the election. I want to know the ‘why?’ What can we do to bring them back? Were we considered a French government? Was it because of our previous leader? Something happened there.” 30 janvier 2019 – Times & Transcript The winner will be tasked with being the official opposition’s lead spokesperson inside the provincial legislature, including question period. And while a full-time Liberal leader in now slated to be selected at a convention on June 22, it doesn’t mean the interim role will immediately end. If the new leader of the party doesn’t have a seat in the legislature, an opposition leader will still be needed until either a seat opens up through a byelection or a general election is called. .

Load more