The Conservative Party and the 2004 Election

In the 2004 federal election, the right-wing interests of Canadians were represented by a new party, the Conservative Party of Canada, the result of a recent merger between the Progressive Conservatives and the Canadian Alliance. This party, despite having only chosen a leader in March and not having an official constitution, did very well in the election (29.6 % of the popular vote, 99 seats), at times appearing to be in sight of winning a majority government. The Conservative Party’s popularity and success suggest that voters were able to identify with the party despite their lack of experience with it- even though the party did not have clear statements of its overall ideology, many voters aligned themselves with the party and voted accordingly. What factors contributed to this outcome? In this paper, I address this question by looking at how voters perceived the new party. Did they see it as a reincarnation of the Canadian Alliance or the Progressive Conservatives? Did the familiarity of the party label add a level of recognition? Or, alternatively, was the party simply seen as the only viable alternative to the governing Liberals? These issues are discussed through an analysis of poll and survey data from the 2004 election