Since Premier Dalton McGuinty announced his resignation, political alarmists have been heralding the imminent doom of the Ontario Liberal Party. Liberals should avoid listening to such unsubstantiated scaremongering. These commentators seem to take instruction from only part of something Nietzsche once said. He remarked, “The snake which cannot cast its skin has to die.” But these critics ignore the fact that Liberals can renew this party by embracing our core values. It is time for the party to embrace our slogan “Forward together” and move forward together to build something new.
It is Kathleen Wynne who has the purposeful and progressive style of leadership to bring about such meaningful change. Liberals — both federally and provincially — must define what the party stands for once again. Do we move to the left and confront the ascendancy of Andrea Horwath or to the right and continue the containment of Tim Hudak?
In answering this question, the party must remember the current political climate.
When the Legislature reconvenes, the government will find itself in the midst of a labour negotiation. Wynne’s collaborative, calm, and consultative style of leadership — and her record as an extremely popular education minister — is what’s needed to successfully bargain with the unions. Her strong managerial background — as Minister of Education, the second-largest ministry, which has an inherent economic outcome, as Minister of Transportation, and most recently as Minister of Municipal and Aboriginal Affairs — show the party her talent for innovative economic leadership.
There’s been much commentary that Wynne is “to the left” of the Party. Rather, Kathleen Wynne stands at the centre of the Liberal Party. She’s an unabashedly progressive candidate who will protect our public services by creating new economic opportunities. Many Ontario Liberals look at the strong polling of the Ontario NDP — including their surprise and surprisingly strong win in the Kitchener-Waterloo byelection — and realize there’s a deep market for progressive politics in this province.
Last year, the PC Party gave Tim Hudak an ultimatum: “be more conservative because that’s how we’ll win.” It’s not often Liberals say to ourselves, “If only we were more true to ourselves, more unashamedly Liberal, we’d win.” It’s time Liberals realize that the best way to win in the current political calculus is to be ourselves. Values win votes.
Kathleen Wynne is a tough, principled politician who trounced the last Conservative Leader of the Opposition. Many Liberals are asking, “What’s next?” Kathleen Wynne promises steady, progressive leadership — and a realization that if we campaign on our values, we can still win.
As Women’s Issues Director for the University of Toronto Liberals, I happily endorse Kathleen Wynne in her bid for the leadership of the Ontario Liberal Party.
Devyn Noonan is Women’s Issues Director for the U of T Liberals. The opinions she expresses are her own.
