3 weeks to go!

We are officially at the mid-way point of the federal election, with only 3 weeks to go until Election Day. A few election-related updates:

Advance polls are now open, and I encourage you to make a plan for voting and get to the polls (Ways to vote – Elections Canada) .

Some other election resources:

1. The CBC offers a useful poll tracker that consolidates and analyzes the many different election polls being updated every week, and provides a good summary:

​Poll Tracker | CBC News​​

1. If you want to get an idea of where the party leaders stand on key issues, Leadership Debates are planned for April 16th (French) at 8 p.m. and April 17th (English) at 7 p.m.

   
   

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2. There are many great political podcasts and Substacks out there that offer valuable insider insights on the latest discussions. Here are a few I enjoy:

   
   

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It’s Political with Althia Raj (from the Toronto Star). For the election, this podcast has convened a panel of “recovering partisans”, who are all recent MPs who have decided not to run again. https://open.spotify.com/show/5gmO4LTIH3AKfX45Dx8I5d?si=4836c58c1f524c54​

The Herle Burly, which features more of an insider perspective with former staffers and a freewheeling discussion: https://open.spotify.com/show/0tiRBlLV9oI5zxjxLUX2D4?si=4faf92c009ab4840​

Rachel Gilmore’s Bubble Pop (which my Gen Z age kids enjoy too), which offers a variety of guests and features Rachel’s diligent research and fact-checking”

​https://substack.com/@rachelgilmore?r=lhlg&utm_campaign=profile&utm_medium=profile-page4​​

1. The Canadian Partnership for Women and Children’s Health, CanWaCH, a network of organizations who work on global women and children’s health issues, has created a 2025 election toolkit for its members: Navigating the 2025 Federal Election: Guidance and resources for CanWaCH Members - CanWaCH​

   
   

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From a Government Relations perspective, at this point, I’m more focused on what comes after the election and how to be ready to engage the new government on its priorities! To that end, I attended a fantastic workshop recently where I was able to dive deep on one of my favourite topics: the public service.

This conference, DemocracyXChange, was co-organized by OCAD University, The Open Democracy Project, and the Dais at Toronto Metropolitan University. I attended the in-person portion of the event on Friday, April 4th. The conversation was timely: democracy is under threat in many contexts and the conference provided practical input on the essential role of public institutions, public service and civil society in maintaining a robust and flourishing democracy. Speakers included the current head of the Canada School for Public Service, the Clerk of the City of Toronto and Hillary Hartley, formerly the Ontario Chief Digital Officer.

The speakers addressed key topics such as navigating polarization and political transition in the public service. Speakers referred to the Westminster model of governance, which Canada inherited from the United Kingdom and which defines many key principles of our parliamentary democracy. For our public service, the Westminster model lays out a number of expectations, including accountability, political impartiality and the ethical obligations of public servants for integrity and honesty. This is a topic I will be exploring much more deeply in my soon to be launched Substack, which I will link to in an upcoming newsletter.