You Can Lead a Horse to Water: Canadian Politics, A Timeline

[JoeyOCanada]

So seeing as how I love Canadian politics and my other timeline has sort of fizzled out, here I go again. I will be going from 1993 all the way until present day covering everything from leadership contests to provincial elections to federal elections. Every now and again I may include some international news to spice things up so without further ado, here we go!
In 1984, Brian Mulroney was successful in leading the Progressive Conservative Party to their largest majority government in history, winning 211 of the 282 seats in Canada. Mulroney was incredibly popular throughout the first little while of his term and was reelected (albeit with a smaller mandate) in 1988. Over the next five years, the popularity of Mulroney and the Progressive Conservatives collapsed as unemployment and the federal deficit grew. In an attempt to offset the debt, Mulroney introduced the Goods and Services Tax which was wholly unpopular which decreased his popularity even further.

Not only was this a hot button issue in this election but Quebec's constitutional status played big on Canadians' fears of a split country but both the Meech Lake and Charlottetown Accords failed, although Quebec was certainly not done asking for it's sovereignty, more on that later.

As Mulroney's popularity continued to decrease, reaching a shockingly low 15% in 1991, he elected to retire from politics in February of 1993, just months short of the next federal election leading to a leadership contest. One thing was for certain, the next leader would have one hell of a task facing Jean Chretien and the Liberals in October.

Member of Parliament for Sherbrooke, Quebec Jean Charest was the first name to be put into contention for the leadership, he is most notable for being the Minister of Environment. Member of Parliament for Edmonton Southwest Jim Edwards put his name into contention as well. Perhaps one of the most surprising names to enter the race was the Member of Parliament for Vancouver Center as well as Minister of Justice Kim Campbell.

The leadership race was mostly contested between Charest and Campbell as Edwards was seemingly lost in the shuffle and soon exited the race, placing his endorsement with Charest. When the convention arrived, it was Kim Campbell who made history, becoming the first female Prime Minister of Canada by shockingly defeating Jean Charest by a 51-49 margin.

June 1993 Progressive Conservative Leadership Election
Kim Campbell - 51% - elected leader
Jean Charest - 49%
When Kim Campbell was elected leader of the party, the Progressive Conservatives enjoyed a brief surge in popularity which was dubbed "CampbellMania", a play on TrudeauMania from years prior. However, the shadow of Brian Mulroney was still being cast over the party.

Within the Liberal ranks, veteran politician Jean Chretien was seen as divisive and unpopular amongst the party's base, especially in Quebec as he publicly declared his opposition to the Meech Lake Accord. While Chretien was a divisive and unpopular leader, the Mulroney backlash meant that the Liberals siphoned off a lot of support from infuriated PCs.

NDP Leader Audrey McLaughlin looked to shore up support in Quebec instead of focusing on Western alienation, although the fact that the party voted "yes" on the Charlottetown Accord meant that the support in Quebec was extremely hard to come by.

Following the failure of Meech Lake, Lucien Bouchard led a group of Progressive Conservatives and Liberal MPs in creating the Bloc Quebecois, a party that quickly gained popularity among Quebec sovereigntists and was even polling as the most popular party in Quebec at points of the campaign.

Another new party that was formed in the lead up to the 1993 election was the Reform Party, formed by Preston Manning. This party was a Western-based populist party, however, it quickly moved far to the right upon formation. It used the slogan "the West wants in" and attempted to siphon off NDP support.

As the campaign kicked off in earnest, the Progressive Conservatives were sitting at a surprising 35% in polling with the Liberals at 37%, NDP at 8%, Bloc Quebecois at 8% and the Reform Party at 10%.

The Liberals were incredibly lucky in this campaign as they had a long time to prepare, having Jean Chretien as the leader for over 3 years at this point. The Liberals were consistently prepared for anything the other parties had to throw at them and released "The Red Book", a document outlining their platform which they had been working on for several years.

The Bloc Quebecois enjoyed a surge in popularity after Lucien Bouchard announced that they would only be running candidates in Quebec and supported Quebec sovereignty.

The Reform Party called for an end to the Goods and Services Tax which would gain them some support as it was a very unpopular decision by the Mulroney government. The party also had limited funds and were forced to fly economy class and eat pre-packaged lunches which endeared them to the average Canadian. The party found itself embroiled in controversy when candidate John Beck made a series of anti-immigrant remarks in an interview, however, Preston Manning quickly denounced them and Beck was forced to withdraw as a candidate.

The New Democratic Party did not appear to be making any headway in the election as disenfranchised voters were said to be preparing to vote Liberal or PC as a protest vote. In the West, the NDP support was siphoned off by the Reform Party.

The Progressive Conservative Party attempted to come out of Brian Mulroney's shadow and Kim Campbell proved to be an effective leader in a trying time for the party. The PC campaign focused mainly on job creation and reducing the deficit, although the party had little credibility on both as the unemployment rate increased and the national deficit rose during the PC's time in office.

The two leaders' debates were seen as relatively tame and inconclusive, although a big moment came when Lucien Bouchard asked Kim Campbell about the real deficit in 1993 and she refused to answer. Polls showed that Kim Campbell and Lucien Bouchard were the winners of the debates and that Jean Chretien was a poor debater, in both languages.

On Election Night, the results came fast and furious and produced an extremely close result. Although the Progressive Conservatives had been absolutely destroyed in the Atlantic provinces and the Western provinces, they managed to hold on and win a minority government winning 104 seats to the Liberals 92. The Reform Party picked up a large amount of support in the Western provinces, winning 52 seats. The Bloc Quebecois did not receive as much support as they had been originally believed to receive but picked up 40 seats in the province. Meanwhile, Audrey McLaughlin and the NDP were embarrassingly defeated and only won 7 seats, losing official party status.

Many were shocked at this minority government result and it was certain that Canadians would be heading to the polls once again very soon.

1993 Canadian Federal Election
Progressive Conservatives: 107 seats: minority government
Liberals: 92 seats
Reform: 52 seats
Bloc Quebecois: 40 seats
NDP: 7 seats

Prime Ministers of Canada:
Pierre Elliott Trudeau (Liberal): 1968-1979
Joe Clark (Progressive Conservative): 1979-1980
Pierre Elliott Trudeau (Liberal): 1980-1984
John Turner (Liberal): 1984
Brian Mulroney (Progressive Conservative): 1984-1993
Kim Campbell (Progressive Conservative): 1993-​

[erſatz-york]

Interesting.

[JoeyOCanada]

Liberal Leader and Leader of the Official Opposition Jean Chretien believed that the slim minority won by the Progressive Conservatives would be enough for him to continue on as party leader but in early 1994 this was proved wrong as he was ousted in a vote of no confidence, setting up another leadership contest.

MP for Humber—St. Barbe—Baie Verte Brian Tobin was the first person to throw his name into contention but he was quickly followed by MP for Hamilton East Sheila Copps. There were rumblings within the party that MP for Windsor West and former interim leader Herb Gray would run for the leadership but he declined. The final big name to join the fray was MP for LaSalle—Émard Paul Martin who pundits said was the front runner.

The race was hotly contested with Brian Tobin topping Paul Martin in several polls leading up to the convention, with Sheila Copps lagging behind.

The convention finally arrived and after 4 ballots, it was Paul Martin that was successful in becoming the leader, winning in 55-40-5 split. Martin was ecstatic and claimed that it was time to take Canada back. Martin would not have too much time to celebrate as the country would be plunged headlong into another election campaign shortly after.

February 1994 Liberal Leadership Election
Paul Martin - 55% - elected leader
Brian Tobin - 40%
Sheila Copps - 5%

[JoeyOCanada]

Quebec was facing interesting times when the 1994 provincial election arrived. On one hand, we had Liberal Daniel Johnson, Jr. seeking his first full mandate as the Premier of the province following him being designated as Premier earlier in the year while on the other hand we had Quebec sovereignist Jacques Parizeau of the Parti Québécois. Another insurgent in the campaign was Mario Dumont and the recently formed Action démocratique.

The campaign was heated and Daniel Johnson, Jr. struggled to maintain any semblance of support among Liberals in the province and on election night, it was Jacques Parizeau who became the new Premier of Quebec by winning 80 seats for his party while Daniel Johnson, Jr. was only successful in capturing 40 seats. Mario Dumont shockingly took 5 seats for his new party.

1994 Quebec General Election
Parti Québécois: 80 seats: majority government
Liberals: 40 seats
Action démocratique: 5 seats

Premiers of Quebec
Robert Bourassa (Liberal): 1970-1976
Rene Levesque (Parti Québécois): 1976-1985
Pierre-Marc Johnson (Parti Québécois): 1985
Robert Bourassa (Liberal): 1985-1994
Daniel Johnson, Jr. (Liberal): 1994
Jacques Parizeau (Parti Québécois): 1994-

[JoeyOCanada]

As Canadians entered 1995, the political climate in the country was becoming increasingly volatile as Quebec was wanting sovereignty and the national debt was soaring. Prime Minister Kim Campbell was forced to call a snap election as she had lost the confidence of the House.

Liberal leader Paul Martin took advantage of Kim Campbell's poor record as Prime Minister and campaigned on promises of cutting the national debt and assisting children in poverty. Along with this, Martin promised to create jobs in the country but did not share how he planned to accomplish that.

Incumbent Prime Minister Kim Campbell of the Progressive Conservatives saw her popularity steadily decrease in her two years in office as the debt kept rising. Campbell promised to unite the country, keeping Quebec as a part of Canada and reducing the national debt by cutting spending in sectors such as the military which proved incredibly unpopular.

Preston Manning and the Reform Party campaigned on cutting taxes and reducing spending. Manning also refused to recognize Quebec as it's own distinct society. Manning's time as leader of the Reform Party was met with much criticism and party infighting as many MPs called on him to resign as he was deemed as not an effective leader.

Audrey McLaughlin of the NDP elected to stay on as leader following the dismal showing in 1993 that lost them official party status. McLaughlin attempted to make inroads in Quebec and the Atlantic provinces but they were not as receptive to this as she had hoped.

Lucien Bouchard and the Bloc Quebecois were seemingly poised to take the majority of the seats in Quebec as Bouchard continued to promise sovereignty for the province.

The debates were dominated by Liberal leader Paul Martin who called out Kim Campbell on her irresponsible spending and her promise of cutting spending to the military. Martin was the unanimous winner of both debates.

Election Night 1995 was an incredibly interesting one, especially for the Liberal Party as Paul Martin was successful in capturing 192 seats to win a stunning majority government. The Bloc Quebecois captured all but 1 seat in Quebec giving them 74 seats, making them the official opposition. The Progressive Conservatives captured 20 seats while the Reform Party was only successful in capturing 10. The NDP fell even further as they were only successful in winning 5 seats.

Paul Martin had done what his father could not, he had become the 20th Prime Minister of Canada.

1995 Canadian Federal Election
Liberals: 192 seats: majority government
Bloc Quebecois: 74 seats
Progressive Conservatives: 20 seats
Reform: 10 seats
NDP: 5 seats

Prime Ministers of Canada
Pierre Elliott Trudeau (Liberal): 1968-1979
Joe Clark (Progressive Conservative): 1979-1980
Pierre Elliott Trudeau (Liberal): 1980-1984
John Turner (Liberal): 1984
Brian Mulroney (Progressive Conservative): 1984-1993
Kim Campbell (Progressive Conservative): 1993-​1995
Paul Martin (Liberal): 1995-

[JoeyOCanada]

1995 continued to be a busy year in politics for Canada as New Brunswick was the next to head to the polls, with incumbent Liberal Premier Frank McKenna seeking another mandate.

With the federal Progressive Conservatives seemingly dead in terms of popularity, provincial PC leader Bernard Valcourt was tasked with the tough job of attempting to unseat the increasingly popular McKenna. Valcourt ran a solid campaign, however, it just didn't seem to get off the ground the way he wanted it to.

Meanwhile, Premier Frank McKenna and the Liberal Party were seen as dominant as ever and pundits said that he would likely win another majority mandate so McKenna was not concerned.

Both Elizabeth Weir of the NDP and Greg Hargrove of the Confederation of Regions Party looked to siphon off the support from the PCs and it seemed to be a smart idea as they were both polling well ahead of the PC when it came down to election night.

On Election Night, the results trickled in and the result was not at all shocking as Frank McKenna and the Liberals won 48 of the 58 seats in the province to win a majority government. Greg Hargrove and the Confederation of Regions won 6 seats while Bernard Valcourt and the PCs only won 3 and Elizabeth Weir and the NDP were only successful in capturing 1.

1995 New Brunswick General Election
Liberals: 48 seats: majority government
Confederation of Regions: 6 seats
Progressive Conservatives: 3 seats
NDP: 1 seat

Premiers of New Brunswick
Hugh John Flemming (Progressive Conservative): 1952-1960
Louis Robichaud (Liberal): 1960-1970
Richard Hatfield (Progressive Conservative): 1970-1987
Frank McKenna (Liberal): 1987-

[JoeyOCanada]

Saskatchewan and Manitoba were the next two provinces to head to the polls in 1995 with both incumbent Premiers seeking another mandate.

First up in Saskatchewan, incumbent NDP Premier Roy Romanow looked to further destroy the Liberals and the PCs in the province as he faced off against Liberal Lynda Haverstock and PC Bill Boyd.

This campaign was pretty cut and dry as both Haverstock and Boyd were seen as weak and ineffective leaders of their respective parties and on election night, Roy Ramanow and the NDP won 55 seats while Lynda Haverstock and the Liberals won 3 and Bill Boyd and the PCs were not able to win any.

1995 Saskatchewan General Election
NDP: 55 seats: majority government
Liberals: 3 seats
Progressive Conservatives: 0 seats

Up next was the election in Manitoba that saw incumbent Progressive Conservative Premier Gary Fillmon seeking another term in office against NDP leader Gary Doer and Liberal leader Paul Edwards.

This campaign was pretty much just a battle between Fillmon and Doer as Edwards and the Liberals struggled to gain any sort of momentum and on election night, the results trickled in and it appeared as though Fillmon would win another mandate but Gary Doer and the NDP shocked everyone by winning 30 seats while the Progressive Conservatives won 26 and the Liberals won 1. Gary Doer was the new Premier of Manitoba.

1995 Manitoba General Election
NDP: 30 seats: majority government
Progressive Conservatives: 26 seats
Liberals: 1 seat

Premiers of Saskatchewan
Allan Blakeney (NDP): 1971-1982
Grant Devine (Progressive Conservative): 1982-1991
Roy Romanow (NDP): 1991-

Premiers of Manitoba
Sterling Lyon (Progressive Conservative): 1977-1981
Howard Pawley (NDP): 1981-1988
Gary Fillmon (Progressive Conservative): 1988-1995
Gary Doer (NDP): 1995-

[JoeyOCanada]

The final election of 1995 was shaping up to be one for the ages in Ontario as incumbent NDP Premier Bob Rae looked to shake the negative popularity of the federal NDP. Challenging him was Progressive Conservative Mike Harris and Liberal Lyn McLeod.

Mike Harris saw a huge surge in his popularity by creating what he deemed the Common Sense Revolution which included things such as cutting income taxes and government spending. Harris also presented himself as an ordinary Ontarian which won him favor with working class citizens of the province.

Bob Rae focused most of his campaign on Northern Ontario with brief stops in the Southern part of the province and polls showed that things did not look promising for him or his party. Lyn McLeod of the Liberals was virtually non-existent as the Liberal support in the province was very weak and unsteady at best.

The leaders' debate took place the week before the election and was easily won by Mike Harris who used his time to plug his Common Sense Revolution while attacking Bob Rae's accomplishments as Premier and Lyn McLeod's weak presence in the campaign.

Election Night arrived and to the surprise of nobody, Mike Harris and the Progressive Conservatives won a majority government by winning 80 of the 130 seats in the Legislature. Bob Rae and the NDP won 33 seats while Lyn McLeod and the Liberals won 17.

1995 Ontario General Election
Progressive Conservatives: 80 seats: majority government
NDP: 33 seats
Liberals: 17 seats

Premiers of Ontario
Bill Davis (Progressive Conservative): 1971-1985
Frank Miller (Progressive Conservative): 1985
David Peterson (Liberal): 1985-1990
Bob Rae (NDP): 1990-1995
Mike Harris (Progressive Conservative): 1995-

[JoeyOCanada]

In early 1996, Audrey McLaughlin lost a leadership review and was ousted as the leader of the federal NDP. Yvon Godin was named as the interim leader until a leadership election could be held.

Alexa McDonough was the first person to put their name into contention for the leadership followed soon after by Lorne Nystrom. The two would begin campaigning early and often in an attempt to secure support early on in the campaign.

Svend Robinson was the next person to declare their candidacy for the leadership of the NDP. Soon after, longtime NDP MP Bill Blaikie declared his candidacy, stating that he wanted to see the party rise back to where it once was.

In a shocking announcement, former Ontario Premier Bob Rae declared that he would be running for the leadership of the federal NDP, stating that he took Ontario to great heights and was ready to take Canada to great heights.

The 5 candidates all showed much promise but polls showed that it would be a tight battle between Svend Robinson, Bill Blaikie and Bob Rae. This led to Lorne Nystrom withdrawing from the race prior to the convention, placing his endorsement with Alexa McDonough.

At the convention, the ballots were incredibly close and Alexa McDonough was eliminated after a poor showing in the first ballot, leaving Bill Blaikie, Svend Robinson and Bob Rae to battle it out. In the end it was Bill Blaikie who secured 51% of the votes on the 4th ballot to become the new leader of the NDP.

1996 NDP Leadership Election
Bill Blaikie - 51% - elected leader
Bob Rae - 33%
Svend Robinson - 16%
Alexa McDonough - Eliminated after 1 ballot
Lorne Nystrom - Withdrew before convention

Leaders of the New Democratic Party of Canada
Tommy Douglas: 1961-1971
David Lewis: 1971-1975
Ed Broadbent: 1975-1989
Audrey McLaughlin: 1989-1996
Bill Blaikie: 1996-

[JoeyOCanada]

Following her defeat as Prime Minister, Kim Campbell announced her retirement from politics, triggering a leadership contest for her seat as the leader of the federal Progressive Conservatives. Jean Charest was named the interim leader of the party following her resignation.

Jean Charest, was of course, the first person to throw his name in contention for the leadership of the party, after having lost 3 years earlier to Kim Campbell. Manitoba MLA Brian Pallister, who knew he was a long shot, threw his name into contention. Former Prime Minister Joe Clark announced a return to politics, stating that now was the time to become Prime Minister once again to unseat Paul Martin.

It was pretty much a forgone conclusion when the convention arrived as Jean Charest won the competition with 70% of the vote to become the official leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada.

1996 Progressive Conservative Leadership Election
Jean Charest - 70% - elected leader
Joe Clark - 27%
Brian Pallister - 3%

[Continential]

Could you do US Elections

[LabourJersey]

Does the Quebec independence referendum still happen in this timeline?

[erſatz-york]

Could you do US Elections

Shut up you Americentric tosser

[JoeyOCanada]

Does the Quebec independence referendum still happen in this timeline?

It does, a year later though. Will be coming up in a few updates!

[JoeyOCanada]

Could you do US Elections

I will give a brief rundown of the 1996 Presidential race in a few updates, stay tuned!

[JoeyOCanada]

British Columbia was the next province that would head to the polls in 1996 and it would be incumbent Premier Glen Clark, who had taken over for Mike Harcourt, of the NDP attempting to earn another mandate against Gordon Campbell of the Liberals. Jack Weiserberger and the Reform Party also ran candidates but it was mainly seen as a one on one battle between the two big parties.

Gordon Campbell consistently attacked Glen Clark's policies but Clark fired back with jabs of his own and the election looked like it would be an absolute dogfight to the final moments with many pundits saying that a minority government was likely.

On Election Night, however, Glen Clark and the NDP won 40 seats to secure another mandate while Gordon Campbell and the Liberals won 34 seats and Jack Weiserberger of the Reform Party won his seat.

1996 British Columbia General Election
NDP: 40 seats: majority government
Liberals: 34 seats
Reform: 1 seat

Premiers of British Columbia
Bill Bennett (Social Credit): 1975-1986
Bill Vander Zalm (Social Credit): 1986-1991
Rita Johnson (Social Credit): 1991
Mike Harcourt (NDP): 1991-1996
Glen Clark (NDP): 1996-

[JoeyOCanada]

Parti Québécois Premier of Quebec Jacques Parizeau was still very invested in Quebec separatism and launched a referendum in 1996. Bloc Quebecois leader Lucien Bouchard joined soon after and Bouchard and Parizeau created an eventful and complex campaign for sovereignty.

Former Premier of Quebec Daniel Johnson, Jr. headed up the "No" side of the campaign and was soon joined by federal Progressive Conservative leader Jean Charest. The campaign ended up being tense and close as both sides were pretty well even in the polls.

Referendum Day arrived and 95% of Quebecers voted, the highest voter turnout in Quebec's history and with 52% of the vote, the "No" side was successful and Quebec would remain a part of Canada.

1996 Quebec referendum
No - 52%
Yes - 48%

[JoeyOCanada]

The small island of Prince Edward Island was next up to the polls as incumbent Premier Keith Milligan was seeking another mandate over Progressive Conservative Pat Binns and NDP Herb Dickieson.

With only 27 seats in the province, this election campaign was going to be very close. Keith Milligan ran on a platform of bringing stability and prosperity to PEI while Pat Binns attacked him on his inexperience as leader. Herb Dickieson campaigned mostly in his riding of West Point-Bloomfield in an attempt to secure the seat.

On Election Night, it was Keith Milligan and the Liberals that narrowly won 19 seats while Pat Binns and the PCs won 7 seats and the Herb Dickieson secured his seat for the NDP.

1996 Prince Edward Island General Election
Liberals: 19 seats: majority government
Progressive Conservatives: 7 seats
NDP: 1 seat

Premiers of Prince Edward Island
James Lee (Progressive Conservative): 1981-1986
Joe Ghiz (Liberal): 1986-1993
Catherine Callbeck (Liberal): 1993-1996
Keith Milligan (Liberal): 1996-

Newfoundland and Labrador was the final province to head to the ballot box in 1996 as incumbent Liberal Premier Clyde Wells was seeking yet another mandate as the Premier of the province against Progressive Conservative Lynn Verge and NDP Jack Harris.

Lynn Verge was seen as a very weak candidate and Jack Harris and the NDP looked to be in a good position heading into the election and attacked Clyde Wells on his 7 years as Premier, stating that he still had not proven himself as a leader.

On Election Night, Liberal Clyde Wells won another majority mandate, winning 30 seats while Jack Harris and the NDP became the official opposition by winning 12 seats leaving Lynn Verge and the Progressive Conservatives with 6 seats.

1996 Newfoundland and Labrador General Election
Liberals: 30 seats: majority government
NDP: 12 seats
Progressive Conservatives: 6 seats

Premiers of Newfoundland and Labrador
Brian Peckford (Progressive Conservative): 1979-1989
Tom Rideout (Progressive Conservative): 1989
Clyde Wells (Liberal): 1989-

[JoeyOCanada]

1996 was also a big year south of the border where incumbent Democratic President Bill Clinton, and his running mate Al Gore, was seeking a second term in office. He would be challenged by Republican Jack Kemp and his running mate Pat Buchanan as well as Reformist Ross Perot and his running mate Richard Lamm.

Bill Clinton led in the polls, sometimes by a substantial margin, for much of the campaign and Ross Perot did not have as much support as he did 4 years prior in 1992. Jack Kemp was seen as a weak candidate and Clinton was predicted to easily win the election.

On Election Night, Bill Clinton was able to capture 400 electoral votes to Jack Kemp's 138, securing him another term in office.

1996 United States Presidential election
Bill Clinton/Al Gore (D): 400 electoral votes: re-elected
Jack Kemp/Pat Buchanan (R): 138 electoral votes

[JoeyOCanada]

Alberta was the only Canadian province to head to the polls in 1997 where incumbent Progressive Conservative Premier Ralph Klein was seeking another term against Liberal Nancy MacBeth, NDP Pam Barrett and Social Credit Randy Thorsteinson.

This election was pretty much a foregone conclusion as the province has been solidly Progressive Conservative since 1971. Although Nancy MacBeth put up a good fight, it was no match for Ralph Klein's popularity in the province. Pam Barrett campaigned extensively in and around Edmonton while Randy Thorsteinson was pretty much a non-factor.

On Election Night, Ralph Klein and the PCs earned another majority mandate, winning 70 seats to Nancy MacBeth and the Liberals' 10 seats and Pam Barrett and the NDP's 3 seats.

1997 Alberta general election
Progressive Conservatives: 70 seats: majority government
Liberals: 10 seats
NDP: 3 seats
Social Credit: 0 seats

Premiers of Alberta
Peter Lougheed (Progressive Conservative): 1971-1985
Don Getty (Progressive Conservative): 1985-1992
Ralph Klein (Progressive Conservative): 1992-

[UWS]

This TL is interesting but how this alternative scenario influence the nominations of the major parties in the U.S. as you put Kemp instead of Dole at the top of the GOP ticket?

[JoeyOCanada]

This TL is interesting but how this alternative scenario influence the nominations of the major parties in the U.S. as you put Kemp instead of Dole at the top of the GOO ticket?

I more so looked at Jack Kemp's Vice Presidential nomination and how Bob Dole was a very bad candidate in 96.

[JoeyOCanada]

Quebec was one of the two provinces that headed to the polls in 1998 with Parti Québécois Premier Jacques Parizeau seeking another mandate against Liberal Monique Gagnon-Tremblay and Action démocratique Mario Dumont.

With the failure of the Quebec referendum just 2 years prior, the Parti Québécois and Jacques Parizeau suffered a steady decline in popularity as the Liberals surged ahead in the polls and the Action démocratique siphoned off some support from the PQ. It appeared as though Jacques Parizeau would not last long as Premier.

On Election Night, Monique Gagnon-Tremblay and the Liberals made history as she became the first female Premier in Quebec's history, winning 76 seats. Jacques Parizeau and the Parti Québécois won 40 seats while Mario Dumont and the Action démocratique  won 9 seats.

1998 Quebec general election
Liberals: 76 seats: majority government
Parti Québécois: 40 seats
Action démocratique: 9 seats

Premiers of Quebec
Robert Bourassa (Liberal): 1970-1976
Rene Levesque (Parti Québécois): 1976-1985
Pierre-Marc Johnson (Parti Québécois): 1985
Robert Bourassa (Liberal): 1985-1994
Daniel Johnson, Jr. (Liberal): 1994
Jacques Parizeau (Parti Québécois): 1994-1998
Monique Gagnon-Tremblay (Liberal): 1998-

[JoeyOCanada]

Nova Scotia was the second of two provinces to head to the polls in 1998 with Liberal incumbent John Savage seeking another term against NDP leader Robert Chisholm and Progressive Conservative leader Peter MacKay (notable for being federal MP Elmer Mackay's son).

The election campaign was extremely close with all parties polling around the same. John Savage promised to balance the budget while Peter MacKay attacked him for his policies. Robert Chisholm campaigned on a platform of limiting government spending and balancing the budget.

On Election Night, Peter MacKay and the Progressive Conservatives won a minority government by winning 25 seats while Robert Chisholm and the NDP won 15 seats and John Savage and the Liberals won 12 seats.

1998 Nova Scotia general election
Progressive Conservatives: 25 seats: minority government
NDP: 15 seats
Liberals: 12 seats

Premiers of Nova Scotia
Gerald Regan (Liberal): 1970-1978
John Buchanan (Progressive Conservative): 1978-1990
Roger Stuart Bacon (Progressive Conservative): 1990-1991
Donald William Cameron (Progressive Conservative): 1991-1993
John Savage (Liberal): 1993-1998
Peter MacKay (Progressive Conservative): 1998-

[JoeyOCanada]

New Brunswickers would once again head to the polls in 1999 with Frank McKenna's Liberals seeking yet another majority mandate against the Progressive Conservatives and Norm Betts and the NDP's Elizabeth Weir as well as Blaine Higgs and the Confederation of Regions. Polls showed that McKenna would likely win another term in office as the campaign kicked off.

Blaine Higgs and the CoR Party looked to siphon off a lot of the support of the Progressive Conservatives in the Southern part of the province by targeting Norm Betts as a weak leader. Elizabeth Weir focused much of her efforts in getting reelected in Saint John Harbour. Frank McKenna campaigned in and around Northern New Brunswick while fending off attacks from the other leaders to his record as Premier.

Election Night arrived and it was Frank McKenna and the Liberals that won a 4th mandate by winning 35 seats. Blaine Higgs and the Confederation of Regions Party won 10 seats while Norm Betts and the Progressive Conservatives won 9 seats and Elizabeth Weir of the NDP won 1 seat.

1999 New Brunswick general election
Liberals: 35 seats: majority government
Confederation of Regions: 10 seats
Progressive Conservatives: 9 seats
NDP: 1 seat

Premiers of New Brunswick
Hugh John Flemming (Progressive Conservative): 1952-1960
Louis Robichaud (Liberal): 1960-1970
Richard Hatfield (Progressive Conservative): 1970-1987
Frank McKenna (Liberal): 1987-