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Liberal leader and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau waves on stage after the federal election at the Palais des Congres in Montreal, Quebec, Canada October 22.CARLO ALLEGRI/Reuters

Letters to the Editor should be exclusive to The Globe and Mail. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. Try to keep letters to fewer than 150 words. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. To submit a letter by e-mail, click here: letters@globeandmail.com.

Election 2019: The minority

Re Trudeau Survives Conservative Challenge In Bitter Campaign (Oct. 22): A minority government is a glass half-empty, half-full result. It can be the best kind of government, but only if all politicians have the courage to come to a consensus on divisive issues.

If Westerners fear a loss of representation in Ottawa, how about bringing them into the fold? My radical suggestion is that the government appoint a Conservative minister from that region with responsibility for shifting fossil-fuel jobs to green-energy jobs.

Jennifer Klenz Vancouver


So the first order of business: Establish a ministry for national unity, headed by the Prime Minister, that would prioritize the country’s diverse needs, while still finding common ground to build a more unified vision for Canada’s future.

Angie Heydon Toronto


We need all voices at the table to help navigate Canada during these precarious times. I believe that the majority of Canadians are asking just that through the election results. This is an opportunity for Conservatives to work collaboratively with other parties to address the climate crisis and demonstrate that they are a party for the times.

Cheryl McNamara Toronto


Re Canada Enters The Age Of Minorities (Editorial, Oct. 22): The Globe and Mail’s editorial argues that a minority government may be bold. I fear the opposite.

The opportunity for boldness came during the past four years with a thumping Liberal majority. What happened to a coherent climate policy; solutions for our housing, health care and Indigenous crises; a new tax code; and significant infrastructure projects? The new government will be hamstrung by special interests held over a barrel by parties who work either divisively against Canada, or whose representation of Canadians is shrinking.

All the party leaders will claim some sort of victory. The rest of us will be the losers.

John Nicholson Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont.

Election 2019: The polls

Re Nanos-Globe-CTV Daily Tracking Poll (Online, Oct. 20): So the national polls, including The Globe and Mail’s Nanos poll, were remarkably accurate. The trouble is that the voting trends pollsters have been tracking are constitutionally irrelevant when seat count is all that matters. Electoral reform – requiring some match between popular vote and seat count – is what’s needed to make national polling relevant.

Alistair Macleod Kingston

Election 2019: The parties

The minority government that Canadians have allowed Justin Trudeau is a slap on the wrist and a warning to the Liberals to stay on course, with no more shenanigans. That Andrew Scheer missed the chance to form a majority government is his alone to absorb; the same with the inability of Jagmeet Singh to become the Official Opposition again. As for the Greens, Elizabeth May may need to go if the party wants to move forward.

It wouldn’t be surprising if all three defeated parties outside of Quebec hasten to seek new leadership. They need an overhaul, just as the Liberals need a serious reappraisal.

Norman Ostonal New Westminster, B.C.


Re Scheer’s Tories Fail To Take Advantage (Oct. 22): This current era of conservativism has been overtaken by ideologues who indulge in politicizing basic science, especially climate change. Even here in Alberta, I see the majority have recognized climate change is caused by human activity; a conservative leader could easily concede this without undermining a small-government approach.

Had Andrew Scheer simply taken a page out of the policy books of other conservatives such as Brian Mulroney, David Cameron or Angela Merkel (radical tree-huggers, that bunch), he might’ve gotten that promotion he’s been pining for.

Eric deVos Canmore, Alta.


The Conservatives taking the popular vote aside, if you combine the popular vote of the Liberals, NDP and Greens, you get a significant majority of Canadians who want a progressive agenda. This may even be a look at what a proportional-representation or ranked-vote government could look like – and why first-past-the-post is so irrelevant.

Sheila Petzold Ottawa


Re Singh’s NDP Fails To Reach New Heights and Greens Won’t Support Liberals If Trans Mountain Moves Forward, May Says (Oct. 22): The NDP and the Green Party shared so many closely contested third- and fourth-place finishes in the election. It leaves me wondering if a merger might be in both parties’ best interests. The Green Democratic Party, perhaps?

Mick Welch Toronto


Re Election Night’s Biggest Winners And Losers (Oct. 22): While it is understandable that voters are reluctant to support an independent candidate, it feels unfair that Jane Philpott is out in the cold while Justin Trudeau is re-elected.

The old song seems correct: Only the good die young.

Peter Hambly Hanover, Ont.

Election 2019: The voters

Re Election Spoils (Letters, Oct. 22): A young letter-writer believes that “If you do not vote, you cannot complain about not being heard.” If you are unfortunate enough to live, as I do, in a “safe” riding, then voting is not a particularly effective method of being heard. Ask a Liberal in Red Deer, Alta., if they were heard this election.

Instead, I write letters, I make calls, I join protest marches. I encourage others to join me. If one wants to be heard, be politically active between elections – even a 17-year-old can participate effectively.

So I do vote, but I have no illusions about being heard as a result.

Andrew Hodgson Ottawa

Election 2019: The PM

The Globe and Mail’s editorial lists Lester Pearson’s achievements within minority governments. May he inspire our current Prime Minister. Mr. Pearson addressed a crisis in the Middle East, while Justin Trudeau is confronting a climate crisis. Mr. Pearson gave us universal health care and the Canada Pension Plan. Let Mr. Trudeau struggle to give us pharmacare and more affordable housing. Mr. Pearson addressed the moral issue of capital punishment, now it’s time for Mr. Trudeau to address the even more pressing issue of getting guns out of our cities.

Ron Charach Toronto


I am glad that Canadians have decided to give Justin Trudeau another chance in spite of a few hiccups during his first term. As a minority, I was anxious about this election as voices of intolerance gained momentum – voices that demanded people such as myself to “go back home.”

May Mr. Trudeau be surrounded with honest advisers who will help him make the right decisions for the betterment of our country and its good people, for our environment and the world at large.

Abubakar Kasim Toronto

Election 2019: The people

Re Bernier And The PPC Face A Letdown With Zero Seats Won (Oct. 22): The People’s Party of Canada does not seem appropriately named, because the people of Canada did not vote for them. What if you threw a party and no one came?

Douglas Cornish Ottawa

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