OTTAWA — A Conservative sign in front of a Liberal stalwart’s home. That’s what’s happening in the Liberal stronghold of Mount Royal during this unusual spring election.
The home in question is that of Irwin and Ariela Cotler. Mr. Cotler is a world-renowned human rights lawyer and a former Liberal MP for the riding.
Ms. Cotler was a social worker known for her work with Montreal’s Jewish community.
The Cotlers are practically legends in Mount Royal. The former Attorney General of Canada under Paul Martin represented the riding in Ottawa from 1999 to 2015, and they are both influential within the Jewish community, which represents approximately 30 per cent of the riding’s population.
Having their support is therefore a big deal. Anthony Housefather, Liberal candidate and Mr. Cotler’s successor in the House of Commons, was proud to announce a few days ago that his “mentor” and “the greatest man (he has) ever known” had given him his support.
But then, there is a video. And a photo.
Ms. Cotler, standing outside the couple’s home alongside Conservative candidate Neil Oberman, announced that she was supporting the Conservatives, not the Liberals.
“I urge you, come out and vote, it’s the future of our families, our children, our grandchildren, and about all of Canada… Vote, of course, for Neil Oberman and the Conservative party, and I wish you luck,” she said.
Oberman’s post also showed a photo of him and Mr. Cotler shaking hands.
“Thank you Irwin Cotler for taking the time to share your wisdom and guidance on humanitarian issues that do and should matter,” he wrote.
Thank you @IrwinCotler for taking the time to share your wisdom and guidance on humanitarian issues that do and should matter and to your dear wife Ariela for joining our Canada First Conservative voices for change. #YourVoteYourVoice pic.twitter.com/ozTJihziig
— Neil G. Oberman (@NeilOberman) April 9, 2025
That was widely seen as an endorsement. Dimitri Soudas, who was Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s director of communication,
“former Chretien era MP and Liberal Justice Minister endorses Conservative Candidate.” Canada Proud, a conservative group, also saw it as a show of support.
When he saw the post online, long time conservative strategist Anthony Koch’s jaw nearly dropped on the floor.
“I would say that it’s a massive story,” he told National Post.
“The fact that Ms. Cotler felt comfortable doing this in such a public way … suggests that this was very important for her and a matter of extreme moral principle,” Koch, who lives in Mount Royal, added.
In a telephone interview with the National Post, Mr. Cotler laughed off the situation.
“We’re a pluralistic family, able to adapt to different political leanings,” he said. No, there’s no tension within the household.
“It was always clear that I would support Anthony and raised no questions or confusions about it. Anthony has always had my support from the time that he stood as a candidate and in each of his elections, and there’s no reason why I wouldn’t support him in this election,” he said.
In Liberal circles, no jaws were found on the floor. Ms. Cotler is known to be an independent woman who is more conservative than her husband. In fact, in 2006, there were reports that
.
Mr. Cotler even confirmed that she had put up Conservative signs on their lawn before.
However, this situation is another indication that Mount Royal has a strange vibe going into this election.
For more than a year,
the Conservatives have been targeting this riding
, spending a lot of money and sweat to oust the Liberal incumbent.
They also nominated a “formidable candidate,”
, in a context where the Liberals were about to lose their Toronto stronghold of Toronto—St.Paul’s in a byelection.
Oberman, a lawyer who filed
an injunction on behalf of McGill University students against an anti-Israel encampment
on campus in 2024, has been doing the groundwork, knocking on more than 10,000 doors, interacting with communities throughout the riding, not only with the Jewish community, but also with the Filipino, the Hindu and the Bangladeshi communities, for instance. He has been meeting with thousands of voters, trying to convince them to switch their vote.
“People don’t leave the Liberal party. The Liberal party left the people. We were all left by the Liberal party,” said Oberman in a long interview.
The growing anger from the riding’s large Jewish population towards the governing Liberals, particularly their positions on Israel and antisemitism since the Oct. 7 terrorist attack by Hamas, has put Housefather in a tough spot.
People are scared to go to synagogue, to drop their kids at the Jewish daycare or school in the wake of many antisemitic incidents.
“It is one of the ridings with the largest Jewish population and therefore is one of the ridings that is the most scarred by what’s happened over the last 18 months,” says Liberal strategist and Justin Trudeau’s former Quebec advisor, Jonathan Kalles.
“And so that will naturally play, will naturally be a factor in how people decide,” he added.
Housefather, a veteran local politician who has steadily increased his majority since 2015, has seen his support dwindle in favor of Oberman. Cracks have appeared in the Liberals’ concrete fortress.
Oberman said, with imagery, that the Conservatives realized that the concrete’s “mixture of cement to water to gravel was not properly laid in the foundation” and that the Liberals “thought they had the perfect recipe.”
“This no longer concretes. What it is is a mixture of sludge that needs to be set aside. And I didn’t create the problem, by the way,” said Oberman.
At some point,
Cotler even advised Housefather to leave the Liberals
and sit as an independent.
Anthony Housefather declined our interview request.
The Red Fortress, once represented by former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, seems to have the Liberals and Conservatives in a toss-up at one point, when the Conservatives held a 25-point lead in national polls.
But the situation has changed in Mount Royal, as it has across the country, with Donald Trump’s constant threats to Canada’s economy and sovereignty.
It has also changed radically since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation in January.
Even if the Jewish vote does indeed lean Conservative, Liberal sources have told us that Housefather’s groundwork should lead to a significant victory. After all, the riding is extremely diverse, and part of Côte-des-Neiges is as red as a beet.
And outside of the Jewish population, affection for the Conservatives isn’t very strong. In fact, as numerous polls in Quebec and across the country indicate, support for Leader Pierre Poilievre is weak compared to Liberal Leader Mark Carney.
And the national momentum is gaining ground in Mount Royal. According to poll aggregator 338Canada,
the Liberals would easily win the riding
.
Irwin Cotler feels it too.
“I think Anthony has, from what I can see, an appreciable lead here in Mount Royal as well,” he said.
National Post
atrepanier@postmedia.com
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