Partisanship may have finally peaked.
uncertain
Partisanship → peak → ?
It’s about time.
asserted
It → ’ → time
It can be hard to hear anything over U.S. President Donald Trump’s bluster.
asserted
It → hear → bluster
A fascinating trend is emerging ahead of the U.S. midterm elections, with wider implications.
asserted
trend → emerge → implications
A handful of candidates are galvanizing voters by ditching their party’s jersey altogether.
asserted
handful → galvanize → jersey
In Texas, U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico is on the ballot as a Democrat but publicly rejects the left vs. right dichotomy and insists he’s running for “Texas above any party.”
asserted
he → reject → party
In Maine, longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins hit the campaign trail with former Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin in tow, to underscore her bipartisan credentials.
asserted
Collins → hit → credentials
Polls show Iowa is poised to elect a Democrat, Rob Sand, as governor for the first time in 20 years.
asserted
Iowa → show → years
Sand has made an impression by saying he “can’t wait” to work with Republican lawmakers.
asserted
he → make → lawmakers
At town halls, Sand delivers a magnificent line: “Right wing, left wing, same bird.
asserted
Sand → deliver → line
Flies a lot better with two wings, doesn’t it?
asserted
it → fly → wings
I could be a little smug here and say Canada has already figured this out.
uncertain
Canada → say → this
After all, Liberal Prime Minister Mark Carney drew votes (and then floor-crossers) from across the political spectrum.
asserted
Carney → draw → spectrum
He has earned a reputation for being focused on the bigger picture, and Canadians have rewarded him with the highest approval rating in the country’s history.
asserted
Canadians → earn → history
However, a shared threat isn’t the same as a changed culture.
asserted
threat → share → culture
More measured politics take a full-time commitment, from candidates, voters, and governments.
asserted
politics → take → candidates
Which brings us to the next test, Monday’s municipal election in Toronto.
asserted
Which → bring → Toronto
It’s been a hard-fought race.
asserted
It → fight → ?
The final week of polling showed incumbent Mayor Olivia Chow and challenger Brad Bradford in a dead heat.
asserted
week → show → heat
But voters know that Chow is the progressive, and Bradford is the conservative.
asserted
Bradford → know → ?
Impressively, both have earned high-profile endorsements from outside their respective NDP and Conservative bases.
asserted
both → earn → bases
At the time of writing, six Liberal MPs in Toronto have endorsed Chow and six have endorsed Bradford.
asserted
six → endorse → Bradford
Last month, Ontario’s Conservative Premier Doug Ford caused a stir when he described his relationship with Chow as “phenomenal.”
asserted
he → cause → Chow
Shortly after Chow took office, the two got to work on a “new deal for Toronto,” It moved the Gardiner and DVP to the province and gave Toronto $1.2 billion in operating relief.
asserted
It → take → relief
Neither side got everything it wanted, and both could claim a win.
uncertain
both → get → win
Yet Ford speaking so highly of Chow’s leadership became headline news that needed walking back.
asserted
that → speak → leadership
His office clarified the next day that it wasn’t an endorsement.
asserted
it → clarify → ?
Positive working relationships across the aisle don’t have to be earth-shaking revelations.
asserted
relationships → work → aisle
We could normalize them.
uncertain
We → normalize → them
I say that from experience.
asserted
I → say → experience
I came up in politics, working for Ontario Premier Mike Harris in the 1990s alongside people like John Baird, who is still a good friend.
asserted
who → come → Baird
But here’s something that often surprises people: I consider Olivia a good friend, too.
asserted
Olivia → ’ → people
We have known each other since the 1980s, when Olivia was a school trustee and an early ally in the fight for equal rights for LGBTQ Canadians.
asserted
Olivia → know → Canadians
We had our eye on the same prize.
asserted
We → have → prize
Partisanship would have kept us apart.
asserted
Partisanship → keep → us
The cause kept us together.
asserted
cause → keep → us
Toronto is a city with many challenges, and to their credit, both Chow and Bradford have remained focused on that fact throughout the campaign.
asserted
Chow → remain → campaign
The race hasn’t gotten nasty.
asserted
race → get → ?
It’s addressed the issues voters care about: affordability, traffic and transit, crime and safety.
asserted
voters → address → issues
Both candidates care deeply about this city.
asserted
candidates → care → city
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
