June 16, 1984
Ottawa Civic Centre
Chairs: Iona Campagnolo (party president) and MP Rémi Bujold (Bonaventure--Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Que.)
Liberal hopefuls returned to the same arena floor 16 years later as Pierre Trudeau bid farewell to both the leadership and the prime minister’s office.
There was less drama this time, even though it’s believed about one-quarter of the 3,400 delegates arrived without a commitment.
THE CONTENDERS
John Turner, who left elected politics since 1975, had most of the party brass in his corner after three months of campaigning. He said he personally spoke to more than 2,500 delegates and promised more fiscal restraint and economic growth.
Jean Chrétien, energy minister at the time, ran on the Trudeau legacy and called himself the “people’s candidate” compared to Turner’s boardroom pedigree. He pointed to a $3.5-billion western oil agreement in early June as proof of his problem-solving ability, and hoped to benefit from Turner's perceived missteps on language rights.
Other candidates were former Treasury Board president Donald Johnston, Justice Minister Mark MacGuigan, Toronto MP and cabinet minister John Roberts, Indian Affairs Minister John Munro, and long-time Agriculture Minister Eugene Whelan, who told delegates that bureaucrats and the Prime Minister’s Office were “pipsqueaks” for thwarting ministerial power.
THE CONVENTION
Turner's support among cabinet ministers dwarfed that of Chrétien, the other main contender.
Chrétien organizers said deals were made with all candidates for the second ballot except for Turner. They hoped he could pull out the win on a third ballot, predicting 1,000 votes on first ballot.
Said Turner biographer Paul Litt: "Turner and Chrétien were roughly even in constituency delegates, who accounted for about two-thirds of the total. But Turner was thought to have carried the ex-officio delegates by a margin of three to one."
MacGuigan lost support of Edmonton Mayor Laurence DeCore during first-ballot voting. His move to Turner was later booed by Chrétien backers.
THE VOTE
The first ballot came back at 5:10p.m. Turner had 46-per-cent support versus 31 per cent for Chrétien, who appeared to have weaker-than-planned support from Quebec delegates. Turner also dominated among the ex-officio and youth delegates.
Roberts, Whelan, and Munro went to Chrétien. Johnston would not ally with other trailers. He remained in hopes being the third man and breaking any deadlock.
But no third ballot was necessary. Turner sailed over the 50-per-cent threshold at 8:30p.m. to take the helm from Trudeau.
MORE:
- Trudeau delivered his farewell speech, complete with the famous “gunslinger” pose. Rich Little and Paul Anka performed.
- Turner supporters wore red and yellow vests with yellow scarves. The music from Chariots of Fire played before he delivered his speech the previous night.
- Party president Iona Campagnolo famously told the convention that Chrétien was "first in our hearts."
