分类: Canadian Monarchy

NDP Leadership Candidates and the Monarchy: Rob Ashton

11/21/2025

Source: candidate website

The third leadership candidate has
now gotten back to me. Rob Ashton
represents the labour wing of the
NDP. I was particularly interested in
hearing from Ashton as most of the
leadership candidates for the party
over the last little while have come
from the party's activist wing. So, as a
refresher here are the questions sent
to Mr. Ashton and his replies:

What are your personal views on the monarchy?

Ashton: "While the monarchy is not a central focus for me
personally, I recognize it as a part of Canada’s history and
one of the ways we are distinct from our neighbors to the
south. My main priority is ensuring that our political system
works effectively for Canadians today— empowering people
and strengthening democracy."

As prime minister would you make use of the
Advisory Committee on Vice-Regal Appointments
that was active between 2010 and 2015?

Ashton: "If I were Prime Minister, appointments should be
transparent, merit-based, and reflect Canada’s diversity."

How important is it to you that the symbols of the
monarchy be fully displayed?

Ashton: "While these are meaningful to some Canadians, my
focus is on building a modern, inclusive democracy in which
everyone feels represented."

How often should Royal Tours occur?

Ashton: "These should be occasional and meaningful,
highlighting Canadian culture, history, and charitable
initiatives rather than purely ceremonial."

How else would you keep the monarchy relevant to
Canadians?

Ashton: "Relevance comes from ensuring the system serves Canadians’ interests and reflects Canadian values and diversity— not from pageantry."

Comments

Overall, Rob's response was good. Remarking that the
monarchy sets us apart from the Americans (rather relevant
these days) is a common argument in favour of the monarchy
- even if I don't personally ascribe to it. The second question is
almost a non-answer because it doesn't get to the root of the
issue; should a prime minister be able to recommend
governor general nominees on their own or should it be an
independent process? The answer to the royal tour question is
pretty much the status quo.

A common through point is that if the system works for all
Canadians then support for the monarchy will follow. This is
an argument I agree with as I have personally seen some
opposition to the monarchy coming from a person's
resentment at their own lot in life.

I was unable to find any other comments on the monarchy
from this candidate.

We are now at the halfway point in collecting replies. I will
most likely post the main page for the leadership survey in a
week or so.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

1 Comment

NDP Leadership Candidates and the Monarchy: Tony McQuail

10/18/2025

Source: Tony McQuail's campaign page

The second NDP leadership
candidate to get back to me is
Tony McQuail. Tony is advocating
for a merger between the NDP
and the Green Party. He describes
himself on his campaign page as a
"farmer, educator, and lifelong
advocate for a fairer and more
sustainable Canada." Tony notes
in his email that he thought he
had gotten back to me. Whether
the problem was on my end or his
it is good to hear back from him. As with everyone else I asked five questions:

1. What are your personal views on the monarchy?
2. As prime minister would you make use of the Advisory Committee on Vice-Regal Appointments that was active between 2010 and 2015?
3. How important is it to you that the symbols of the monarchy be fully displayed?
4. How often should Royal Tours occur?
5. How else would you keep the monarchy relevant to Canadians?

In reply Tony stated:

"The older I get the more I realize I don't know. What I do
know (personal view) about King Charles is that I was very
impressed when I heard him, as Prince Charles, at the Slow
Food Conference in Torino, Italy many years ago. And also
when I saw him in the documentary "The Farmer and His
Prince". His understanding of the importance of an
ecological/regenerative approach to agriculture was quite
hopeful. You can see the video at.

https://docfilm42.com/film/the-farmer-and-his-prince/

or if you google movie the farmer and his prince you can find
the trailer.

I haven't given the question of the monarchy much thought -
you obviously have. I am a farmer who, for the past 45
years, has also been involved politically pushing for a fairer
and environmentally regenerative society. My sense is we
are not making progress."

Its a more positive response vis-à-vis the monarchy than Yves
Engler gave so I'll take it. It has been interesting watching the
King's views on the environment, agriculture, and
architecture move from being fringe positions worthy of
mockery to mainstream ideas politicians fall over each other
to advocate. At the same time Tony acknowledges that he
doesn't think about the monarchy all that much which is
unfortunately common in Canada. Not surprisingly I didn't
find any comments online regarding the monarchy made by
Mr. McQuail.

While this blog is pretty much agnostic about politics outside
of the monarchy, in a hypothetical world where Tony wins the
leadership and the NDP and Greens do merge it would be
good to see someone not opposed to the monarchy at the
helm of the combined party. Elizabeth May has been a vocal
champion of the monarchy for many years but its also been
clear for a while she wants out. At the same time its unclear
how monarchist the Green base is.

A big thanks to Tony for getting back to me.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

NDP Leadership Candidates and the Monarchy: Yves Engler

7/31/2025

Source: Yves Engler's Campaign Page

The NDP leadership race is going to be a long one with it not set to
conclude until 2026. Even so there
are two candidates already
declared. As with previous
leadership races a questionnaire
will be sent to each candidate. I
received Yves Engler's response a
few days ago. Mr. Engler has the
support of the NDP Socialist
Caucus so perhaps I shouldn't have
held out hope he would have a
well-thought out and nuanced position. Still his response to
the questionnaire was disappointing, if straight-forward:

"I'm opposed to monarchy"

On his personal blog he has called for the monarchy to be
abandoned (which also ran in several socialist publications).

Perhaps with the NDP's crushing result in the last election the
republicans feel they finally have an opportunity. It is up to
the supporters of the Crown within the NDP to prove them
wrong.

EDIT: Yves has made abolishing the monarchy a part of his campaign platform.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Overview of Pro-Monarchy Voices in Canada

6/20/2025

Last month's opening of Parliament by the King was about
sending a message. Well, sending a couple messages. It was
about sending a message to Trump that Canada had a head of
state and they aren't in the market for a new one. It was also
about showing the king had the backs of Canadians.

In both of these areas there has been success. Trump, despite
his murmuring on the issue, has toned down the more
inflammatory rhetoric on the issue. Meanwhile, the monarchy
and His Majesty are enjoying a bit of a polling bump.

So with this event fading into the past I wanted to take a
second to assess the health of the wider monarchist
movement in Canada.

Monarchist Organizations

The Monarchist League of Canada is
the oldest organization focused solely on
defending the Canadian Crown having been
founded in 1970. The League has three key
mandates; education, advocacy, and
research. The League tends to be highly
engaged and might be termed as the most
approachable of the organizations listed
here. It is strictly non-partisan which has allowed it to
advocate for the monarchy freely regardless of who is in
power. It has been instrumental in protecting symbols of the
Canadian Monarchy from removal.

The Institute for the Study of the Canadian Crown
(ISCC) is a much younger organization which only came
together in 2014, although an informal network had existed
since 2005. Founded at Massey College, the first president of
the Institute was John Fraser who was the head of the College
at the time. Their mandate is a bit more focused on research
and its not really an organization the general public can join.
In this regard it can be thought of as a sort of think tank.

The Société de la Couronne du Canada
(Crown Society of Canada) is interesting in
that it is primarily focused on the Crown in
Quebec. It was founded in 2021 in response
to what was perceived as an unwillingness
by other organizations to defend the
monarchy in the province. Like the
Monarchist League of Canada it is an organization based
around mass membership. It was formerly known as the
'Monarchist Society of Canada'.

Blogs

While few and far between there are Canadians blogging on
the monarchy. Carolyn Harris, self-described royal
historian, maintains a blog and has published several books
on the Canadian Monarchy. She is a member of the ISCC and
has spoken on their behalf before.

And that, as far as I can tell, is it - three organizations and two
bloggers. Its not a lot but it may be enough. Especially in the
case of the Monarchist League and the ISCC its good that
there is a back-up in case one organization runs into trouble. While the Crown Society of Canada has picked a hard fight
that will take a substantial amount of grit.

On the blogging front it would be nice to have more voices if
only because the mere presence of more voices helps dispel
the notion that monarchism isn't a fashionable opinion to
have. Blogging is in the middle of a bit of a resurgence in
Canada so it will be interesting if others take to blogging
about the monarchy.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

EDIT: Added information on the Crown Society of Canada.

Happy Victoria Day & a Few Odds and Ends

5/19/2025

Happy Victoria Day!

The health of the Canadian Monarchy has had its ups and
downs since this blog began. On this blog's 11th anniversary it
is nice to see the monarchy's popularity on a bit of an
upswing with two recent polls showing a turn-around of
declining support for the institution and its members. You
love to see it. The rallying around the monarchy in light of
Trump's threats has been a delightful surprise amidst a rather
stressful situation. It has also led to King Charles being
scheduled to give the Speech from the Throne later this
month. This will be only the third time a monarch has done
this with the last instance being in 1977.

The Progressive Bloggers are
currently celebrating 20 years as a blog
aggregator. This blog has been a
member for quite a few years now. I wrote a whole article at
the time going over why I wanted a pro-monarchy blog to join
an aggregator for progressive blogs but to summarize; the
institution of monarchy has benefits for both conservative and
progressive movements. Further, unlike Australia, where the
monarchy has become highly politicized, in Canada the
monarchy has support across the political spectrum (if recent
polls are to be believed, higher support from the left). So I
would like to congratulate Progressive Bloggers on the
milestone and wish them continuing success.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Liberal Leadership Candidates and the Monarchy: Frank Baylis

5/6/2025

I received a rather unexpected email the
other day from former Liberal leadership
candidate, Frank Baylis. He is apparently
working his way through all of his
campaign correspondence. While outside
of the focus of these surveys it is always
nice to see politicians taking
communication seriously, especially when
they have nothing to gain from it. Here is
what Mr. Baylis had to say in response to
my questions:

"I have not reflected in detail about the institution of the monarchy.
Having said that, I do believe that we should respect the fact the
monarch is still our head of state."

Short and to the point. This is also his most substantial
statement on the monarchy to date (ie. the only one). His
Crown & Cap score has been adjusted on the page dealing
with the Liberal Leadership Election.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

2025 Federal Election Leaves NDP with a Mixed Bag of Survivors

4/29/2025

To say the recently concluded federal election was bad for the
New Democratic Party is like saying the Hindenburg had a
minor accident. The NDP has suffered their single worst
result ever. The ups and downs of partisan politics isn't really
relevant to this blog but any potential effects on the monarchy
certainly are. So to that effect I will give a brief overview of
where the NDP's seven survivors stand.

Also note that, as I predicted in my last article, Jagmeet
Singh did not win re-election. Although unexpectedly Nicki
Ashton joined Singh and Angus in retirement. All three were
openly republican and their passing from the political scene
will not be missed.

So, with that out of the way, here are the survivors:

Gord Johns - We'll start on a high note. Mr. Johns wrote a
lovely tribute to the Queen after her passing. It does not
appear he was present to vote on the Bloc's motion to abolish
the monarchy for whatever reason.

Lori Idlout - Voted in favour of the Bloc's abolition motion.
In terms of public statements she has said the coronation of
King Charles III was a good opportunity to reset the
relationship with Canada's First Nations.

Heather McPherson - It has been hard to find anything
regarding Ms. McPherson's stance on the monarchy. She does
not appear to have been present for the Bloc's motion.

Jenny Kwan - Another party member who voted in favour of
the Bloc's motion. She did however post a tribute to the late
Queen when she passed.

Don Davies - Voted in favour of the Bloc motion but has
made no other substantial statements on the topic.

Leah Gazan - Voted in favour of the Bloc motion and has
made negative statements regarding the monarchy.

Alexandre Boulerice - Voted in favour of the Bloc motion
and has made numerous calls to end the monarchy. Probably
the most vocal republican left in the NDP caucus.

Its unclear who will end up as the next NDP leader (or even if
it will be someone from caucus). Alexandre Boulerice is by far
the most concerning choice they could make but overall the
monarchist contingent within the NDP caucus has been
decimated along with the party. It is unclear whether this will
lead to republican voices becoming predominate but members
should be vigilant.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Republicans Leaving Canadian Federal Politics (by choice or otherwise)

3/26/2025

There is a federal election underway and I wanted to take a
second to look at what this means for the monarchy. While
the monarchy is not directly effected by who wins any given
election (that is one of the advantages of our system) the fact
remains that having fewer opponents of the monarchy near
the levers of power is a good thing. So in this post I will look
at which republicans are unlikely to trouble the monarchy
further.

Chandra Arya made waves by entering the
Liberal Leadership race, calling for the
abolishment of the monarchy (along with a
bunch of other third rails of Canadian
politics), and being kicked out of the race.
He was still, however, an MP. That is until
the Liberal Party barred him from running
under their banner in the election, which
effectively ends his career.

Charlie Angus has been opposed to the
monarchy for many years. Unlike Mr. Arya
who has the political skills of a rock, Mr.
Angus was a force within the NDP and has
often been mentioned as a potential leader.
The announcement of his retirement from
federal politics comes as a relief. However,
there is reason to hold off celebrating just
yet...

Jagmeet Singh (and a majority of the
NDP caucus) have seen their polling
absolutely collapse in recent weeks with the
potential for them to be reduced to single-
digit seat counts. So even if Mr. Singh
survives, his days are numbered.
Unfortunately, of the names bandied about
as potential survivors only Peter Julian
voted against the 2022 Bloc motion to end
the monarchy.

Yves-François Blanchet - As the man
who proposed the 2022 motion on ending
the Canadian Monarchy I would like to say
Mr. Blanchet is for sure not going to be
returning to Parliament. However, I can't.
While Bloc polling numbers are down and
they seem set to lose seats to the Liberals,
Mr. Blanchet took the party from having
only 10 seats to the low 30s. Anything other
than a disastrously bad result probably
sees him remain around. However, since every Bloc member
voted in favour of his motion I would still count their caucus
shrinking to be a win.

The Monarchist League of Canada seems convinced that Mark
Carney is a monarchist which is a positive as it was always a
bit touch and go with Trudeau (a fact I have talked about in
previous posts). Pierre Poilievre has never really said much on
the issue which doesn't inspire confidence. Likely we will see
at least two leadership contests following this election (likely,
the Conservatives and NDP). The Conservatives might be
inclined to pick a more traditional conservative voice but the
NDP could present problems, especially if Charlie Angus
decides to un-retire to try and chip away at the Liberal's left
wing. Still, Peter Julian has run for the leadership before and
if the NDP caucus is significantly reduced he might make
another go at it. Still, the general direction of this election
seems positive for the monarchy.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

Liberal Party Leadership Race: Views on the Monarchy

3/3/2025

This is the first leadership race for the Liberal Party of Canada
since I began carrying out these surveys in 2017. As I have
detailed over the years, the Liberal Party of Canada has
dealt with the matters of the Crown in a decidedly uneven
manner. That is why I was really interested to see if the
current crop of candidates had anything interesting to say
regarding the monarchy.

Spoiler: for the first time since I began carrying out these
surveys in 2017 I have received no responses at all from any of
the candidates. This has made the typical Crown & Cap
Scoreboard somewhat more research-intensive to fill out.
While I have sent a final appeal for responses the results
below are probably final. As always, if I receive a reply I will
create a separate post going into their views more fully.

Questions & Replies

The questions that were posed to the candidates are below.
They are largely the same as in previous leadership surveys.

1. What are your personal views on the monarchy?
2. As prime minister would you make use of the Advisory Committee on Vice-Regal
Appointments that was active between 2010 and 2015?
3. In 2019 the government cancelled a program that mailed physical copies of the
Queen's portrait to any Canadian who asked free of charge. Would you restore this
program?
4. How important is it to you that the symbols of the monarchy be fully displayed?
5. Do you feel the current government has been unreasonably slow in announcing
various aspects of the new reign (official portraits, new coinage, etc)?

Below are links to each candidate's reply (should any be
received) and a short look at any previous comments they
may have made in regards to the monarchy. Candidates who
failed to qualify or withdrew are included for historical
reference. Candidates are listed by the date they entered the
race.

Qualified to appear on the ballot
Frank Baylis
Mark Carney
Chrystia Freeland
Karina Gould

No longer in the race
Ruby Dhalla
Jaime Battiste

Crown & Cap Scoreboard

Here I have ranked the candidates support for, or opposition
to, the monarchy. Keep in mind this is only my assessment
and your mileage may vary. Also, note that changes may occur
as the campaign goes on.

The crown score is out of five crowns with each candidate
receiving one crown for stating support for the monarchy
in their reply, one crown for having defended the monarchy
in Parliament, two crowns for outlining how they would
improve the monarchy's role in the future, and one crown for
having spoken in support of the monarchy outside of
Parliament.

The cap score is likewise out of five caps with one cap given to
a candidate for being opposed to the monarchy in their reply,
one cap for desiring a referendum on the monarchy, one cap
for opposing the monarchy in Parliament and two caps for
making the establishment of a Canadian republic a part of
their policy platform.

Frank Baylis

Frank Baylis has limited public
statements to begin with as he was
not really a public figure before
entering the race. I found no
comments one way or the other.

Score:

Mark Carney

Other than a condolence message on
the passing of Elizabeth II and an
article examining the Magna Carta
which treated the monarchy fairly,
Carney hasn't had a lot to say on the
topic.

Score:

Chrystia Freeland

Like Frank Baylis I could find no
public statements regarding the
monarchy. Unlike Baylis, Freeland is
a public figure and has a large body
of public statements. However, she
did vote against the Bloq motion to
end the monarchy which I'll count as
a half crown.

Score:

Karina Gould

Ms. Gould is interesting. Much like
the other candidates her public
statements on the monarchy are
sparse but she heavily promoted the
King Charles III Coronation Medal
and like Ms. Freeland voted against
the Bloc motion. I want to give her a
2/3 crown but that would be needless
splitting of hairs (and crowns).

Score:

A Worrying Trend

Having now carried out seven of these surveys a worrying
trend has begun to appear. The first survey in 2017 received
13 out of 17 replies. Both leadership races in 2020 still had a
majority of candidates responding. 2022 saw that number
drop to a minority for the first time and 2024 didn't see the
sole candidate respond until after they were already leader.

It is tempting to chalk this up to campaigns operating on
tighter timelines with bigger financial hurdles (this one had
both) but it would be foolish to ignore the cantankerous mood
the public has gotten into. A mood which I feel has led
politicians to raise the drawbridge. You can't be attacked if
you don't put yourself out there in the first place. Better to say
nothing rather than lose a potential vote (or say something
that can be twisted out of proportion). Now, this isn't exactly
new in politics; some elected officials have made a career out
of skipping town hall meetings and debates. Likewise,
frontrunners having a post-it note for what policies they
support is a recurring theme. However, its bad for democracy
and we have an example down south of what happens when
democracies go bad.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

American Threat Stirs New Interest in the Canadian Monarchy

2/20/2025

The Monarchist League of Canada has
sent out an email today with updates
on its various initiatives. The update
on its social media campaign is worth
examining:
"We continue to attract queries, trial
members and new paying members.
We expected the first two. However,
the full memberships continue in
steady numbers - and that was
unexpected!"

This is great, of course, but the League goes on to say;

"...from the comments we receive, the current threats to our
nationhood are indeed driving a desire to want to know
more about and/or appreciate the distinctiveness of our
institutions, as well as the outward manifestations of which
we all see."

Perhaps this shouldn't be too surprising when this was the
advert I saw in January:

This is an interesting development and one that is reinforced
by what Canadians are searching online in recent weeks.

Google Trends result for 'Canadian Monarchy'

There has been an up-tick in searches for the Canadian
Monarchy. Concurrent searches are actually at a higher level
than at any point in 2024. Recently, an article posted to
r/CanadaPolitics on the King's statement regarding Flag
Day received 860 upvotes at a 97% upvote ratio. This is a
higher than average ratio for any posted article, let alone one
on the monarchy.

Out of curiousity I also wanted to see if these results held for monarchy-adjacent topics. I checked the Google Trends result
for 'United Empire Loyalist' and there is a similar uptick
which occurred at about the same time:

I think from these results it is clear that Canadians are
reconnecting with their institutions and history. If the
American regime remains hostile these results could be
sustained. This is even more true when you consider a Royal
Homecoming is in the works for the near future. The timing
of said Homecoming could very well see the King open a
session of Parliament in the Spring (presuming an early
election) which would highlight the monarch's constitutional
role in Canada.

While Trump's vulgar notions of annexing Canada and the
very real economic damage he is inflicting by tariffs (and the
mere threat of tariffs) are very bad for Canada, if his actions
lead to a Canada more confident in itself and its history he
will have unintentionally left Canada more united then ever.

Loyally Yours,
A Kisaragi Colour

<<Previous

NDP Leadership Candidates and the Monarchy: Rob Ashton

Comments

NDP Leadership Candidates and the Monarchy: Tony McQuail

NDP Leadership Candidates and the Monarchy: Yves Engler

Overview of Pro-Monarchy Voices in Canada

Monarchist Organizations

Blogs

Happy Victoria Day & a Few Odds and Ends

Liberal Leadership Candidates and the Monarchy: Frank Baylis

2025 Federal Election Leaves NDP with a Mixed Bag of Survivors

Republicans Leaving Canadian Federal Politics (by choice or otherwise)

Liberal Party Leadership Race: Views on the Monarchy

Questions & Replies

Crown & Cap Scoreboard

A Worrying Trend

American Threat Stirs New Interest in the Canadian Monarchy

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