People's Party of Canada

People's Party of Canada
Parti populaire du Canada
AbbreviationPPC
LeaderMaxime Bernier
FounderMaxime Bernier
FoundedSeptember 14, 2018; 6 years ago (2018-09-14)
Split fromConservative Party of Canada
HeadquartersGatineau, Quebec, Canada
Youth wingNew Generation PPC
Membership (2021)Increase 30,000[1]
Ideology
Political positionRight-wing to far-right
Colours  Purple
Senate
0 / 105
House of Commons
0 / 338
Website
peoplespartyofcanada.ca

The People's Party of Canada (PPC; French: Parti populaire du Canada) is a federal political party in Canada. The party was formed by Maxime Bernier in September 2018, shortly after his resignation from the Conservative Party of Canada. It is placed on the right[2][3] to the far-right[4][5][6] of the political spectrum.[2][3][7]

Bernier, a former candidate for the 2017 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election and cabinet minister, was the party's only Member of Parliament (MP) from its founding in 2018 to his defeat in the 2019 Canadian federal election. The PPC formed electoral district associations in 326 ridings,[8] and ran candidates in 315 ridings,[8][9] of Canada's total 338 ridings, in the 2019 federal election; however, no candidate was elected under its banner and Bernier lost his bid for personal re-election in Beauce.[8] The party ran 312 candidates in the 2021 Canadian federal election; none were elected to parliament, despite it increasing its share of the popular vote to nearly 5%.[10][11]

The party has been described primarily as conservative[12][13][14] with right-wing populist[15][16][17] and libertarian[2] policies. Specific policies advocated by the party include reducing immigration to Canada to 150,000 entrants per year,[18] scrapping the Canadian Multiculturalism Act, withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, ending corporate welfare, and ending supply management. In the 2021 federal election, the PPC also ran in opposition to COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions, vaccine passports, and compulsory vaccinations.[19][20]

  1. ^ @peoplespca (December 20, 2021). "Day Seven of the 12 Days of PPC Christmas! Today, we're celebrating the huge growth of our membership! @MaximeBernier" (Tweet). Retrieved December 20, 2021 – via Twitter.
  2. ^ a b c "Conservatives 'paying attention' to Bernier's new party, MP says". Toronto Star. September 14, 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Maxime Bernier announces the People's Party of Canada". iPolitics. September 14, 2018. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  4. ^ "Canada leaders' debate: tarnished Trudeau puts climate crisis at heart of election". The Guardian. October 8, 2019. The wildcard coming into the evening was Maxime Bernier, leader of the far-right populist party the People's party of Canada. Formed amid a feud between Bernier and the Conservative party, its platform is defined by restrictive immigration politics and climate change denial.
  5. ^ Meyer, Carl (October 7, 2019). "Jagmeet Singh accuses Maxime Bernier of inciting hatred". National Observer. Retrieved September 28, 2021. ... Canada's first racialized federal party leader repeatedly squared off against the boss of the country's newest far-right party at the English-language election debate.
  6. ^ Tubb, Ed (October 9, 2019). "Missed the French-language leaders' debate? Replay it here". Toronto Star. Retrieved October 14, 2019. He [Trudeau] continued attacking Scheer on the economy in an at-times chaotic three-way debate segment with the Conservative leader and far-right People's Party of Canada leader Maxime Bernier.
  7. ^ Bilefsky, Dan (October 15, 2019). "A 'Mad Max' Candidate Offers a Far-Right Jolt to the Canadian Election". The New York Times. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  8. ^ a b c Turnbull, Sarah (October 21, 2019). "Maxime Bernier loses riding he's held since 2006 but says PPC still has future". CTV. Retrieved February 22, 2020. The party went into the campaign pledging to nominate a candidate for all 338 ridings, but secured 326 and only registered 315 by Elections Canada's nomination deadline.
  9. ^ Smith, Charlie (October 21, 2019). "People's Party of Canada Leader Maxime Bernier loses Quebec riding of Beauce". Straight. Georgia Straight. Retrieved February 22, 2020. He added that his heart goes out to the 315 PPC candidates across the country.
  10. ^ Raycraft, Richard (September 20, 2021). "People's Party makes vote gains but doesn't win a seat". CBC News. Retrieved September 25, 2021. Last updated September 21, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: postscript (link)
  11. ^ Moscrop, David (September 22, 2021). "Rise of People's Party is moment of reckoning for Canada". Global News. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  12. ^ Lévesque, Catherine (May 12, 2023). "Bernier accuses Tories of veering left as he launches byelection campaign in Manitoba". National Post. Retrieved March 21, 2024.
  13. ^ "Maxime Bernier officially launches new conservative People's Party". Global News. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  14. ^ "Maxime Bernier officially launches new conservative People's Party". Global News. Retrieved September 14, 2018.
  15. ^ "What I learned at a People's Party of Canada rally". The Conversation. November 19, 2018.
  16. ^ Aiello, Rachel (September 14, 2018). "Maxime Bernier launches People's Party of Canada". CTVNews. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  17. ^ "Maxime Bernier on next steps for The People's Party of Canada". Le Devoir (Interview) (in French). September 15, 2018.
  18. ^ "Immigration". People's Party of Canada. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  19. ^ Debusmann, Bernd Jr. (September 1, 2021). "Canada election: 'Mad Max' and why his party is on the rise". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  20. ^ Rakich, Nathaniel (September 20, 2021). "How Canada Got Here". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved September 25, 2021.