Said1
Gold Member
Tue, June 29, 2004
Bruised Martin wins reprieve Manages to turn the tide
By STEPHANIE RUBEC, Ottawa Bureau
MONTREAL -- Canadians have decided to let Prime Minister Paul Martin off with a warning. Martin supporters cheered wildly last night in his Montreal-area campaign headquarters as Canadian voters grudgingly gave him a second crack at the PM's job.
Last night's victory came after a very difficult campaign for Martin who struggled through the first few weeks as voters vented about the Liberal mismanagement of the $250-million sponsorship scandal and the $1-billion gun registry.
Francis Fox, Martin's principal secretary, said he's surprised by the strong support in Atlantic Canada and Ontario. "I think it was neck and neck right up to the last minute," Fox said. "It's clear that some people changed their mind on the way into the polling station."
Early in the election campaign polls showed voters were bent on punishing Martin for AdScam by voting for Stephen Harper's Conservatives or Jack Layton's NDP. And Martin lost the support of longtime Grits when he pushed out several members of former PM Jean Chretien's old guard.
It wasn't until Martin took on his rivals at the mid-June leaders' debate and stepped up the campaign pace that the tide turned.
And support rose when Liberal ads warning that Harper would lead the country into debt, erode medicare and hurt seniors and minorities began to hit home.
But Martin's win fell far short of expectations by Liberals who predicted during his December coronation that he would take 200-plus seats.
More:
www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/WinnipegSun/News/2004/06/29/518161.html
Bruised Martin wins reprieve Manages to turn the tide
By STEPHANIE RUBEC, Ottawa Bureau
MONTREAL -- Canadians have decided to let Prime Minister Paul Martin off with a warning. Martin supporters cheered wildly last night in his Montreal-area campaign headquarters as Canadian voters grudgingly gave him a second crack at the PM's job.
Last night's victory came after a very difficult campaign for Martin who struggled through the first few weeks as voters vented about the Liberal mismanagement of the $250-million sponsorship scandal and the $1-billion gun registry.
Francis Fox, Martin's principal secretary, said he's surprised by the strong support in Atlantic Canada and Ontario. "I think it was neck and neck right up to the last minute," Fox said. "It's clear that some people changed their mind on the way into the polling station."
Early in the election campaign polls showed voters were bent on punishing Martin for AdScam by voting for Stephen Harper's Conservatives or Jack Layton's NDP. And Martin lost the support of longtime Grits when he pushed out several members of former PM Jean Chretien's old guard.
It wasn't until Martin took on his rivals at the mid-June leaders' debate and stepped up the campaign pace that the tide turned.
And support rose when Liberal ads warning that Harper would lead the country into debt, erode medicare and hurt seniors and minorities began to hit home.
But Martin's win fell far short of expectations by Liberals who predicted during his December coronation that he would take 200-plus seats.
More:
www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/WinnipegSun/News/2004/06/29/518161.html
