October 3, 2023 is the Manitoba election. The ruling PCs led by Heather Stefanson are on the ropes after first coming to power two terms ago in 2016. They deposed an unpopular, exhausted and divided NDP dynasty that had held office for seventeen long years. The NDP is on the cusp of retaking power under the leadership of Wab Kinew. Kinew was leader in the 2019 election and was soundly defeated. If the NDP wins, he will become the first Indigenous provincial premier in Canada.
The Manitoba election has seen the PCs adopt a nasty scapegoating strategy against trans people first developed by America's right-wing movements and now provincial governments in Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Ontario. The scapegoating of trans people under the guise of “parental rights” serves to rally its right-wing base
among various conservative and religious communities. However, scapegoating of
this nature is also about deflecting attention and scrutiny from the PC
government’s terrible policies of permanent austerity, privatization, and
profits over people.
Kinew and the NDP have positioned themselves against the PC’s scapegoating and have also pushed hard on promises of healthcare reinvestment. However, a closer investigation reveals a broad and deep consensus between the NDP and
PCs on most economic and fiscal policy. These shared policies put wealthier people
and business interests first while containing social programs, public
development and democratic planning within the strict confines of permanent
austerity. The following is an attempt to unpack aspects of this right-wing consensus between Manitoba's PCs and NDP.