The Hill: The profound Liberal disconnect from rural Canada

The Oct. 14 election left Liberals frozen out of rural areas. But despite the Tories’ embarrassment of riches, the new cabinet has no one with personal connections to Ontario agriculture

by BARRY WILSON

The rout of the Liberal Party in rural Ontario, which began with the 2004 election, was essentially completed in the Oct. 14 vote.

After the 2006 election, veteran MP Paul Steckle in Huron-Bruce proclaimed himself the last rural Liberal in an agricultural riding still standing west of the Quebec-New Brunswick border.