Confidence vote was gamble for MLA, Tories: political expert

BRANDON — A Progressive Conservative MLA’s decision to put forward a confidence motion against the party’s former leader carries a lot of risk for her and the Tories, a political science expert says.

Obby Khan resigned as leader of the PCs on Monday after Jodie Byram (Agassiz) initiated a confidence vote against him the previous week.

The majority of the PC caucus voted in favour of Khan, but he resigned a few days later, citing continued efforts to undermine him by a minority of MLAs.

Brandon University political science Prof. Kelly Saunders said while she doesn’t know what Byram’s motivations were for triggering the vote, such a move carries a lot of risk.

“She probably thought, ‘We’re not going to win with him, and we need to take our chances on maybe finding a leader and getting that person in place quickly enough to be able to capitalize on that for the next election,” said Saunders.

She acknowledged that move could “blow up big” for the party, as it doesn’t provide a lot of time before the next election, which is slated on or before Oct. 5, 2027.

Byram, who is in her first term after being elected with 64 per cent of the vote in the 2023 election, couldn’t be reached by phone on Tuesday or Thursday.

Agassiz includes the communities of Neepawa, Carberry, MacGregor and Gladstone.

Saunders said Byram will have to explain to her constituency’s voters what her motivations were for pushing to oust the leader.

Those voters “have every reason to say, ‘Explain to us why you did what you did and what your reasoning was,’ and she’s going to have to be held to account for that,” Saunders said.

“Voters get to decide whether or not they believe her reasoning was a good one, or whether or not they felt that she plunged the party and the Opposition into troubled waters.”

Khan told the Brandon Sun he publicly identified Byram and Selkirk MLA Richard Perchotte — who seconded Byram’s motion — as the MLAs who started the confidence review because voters have the right to know what their elected representatives are doing.

He said it’s important for Manitobans to know who is part of a team and who “lacks the moral integrity of what it means to be on a team.”

Khan said he received the confidence of 13 of the 19 PC members who voted.

The former Tory leader praised a small number of MLAs, including Greg Nesbitt (Riding Mountain), Rick Wowchuk (Swan River) and Colleen Robbins (Spruce Woods) while he announced his resignation from the party.

“You are some of the finest people I’ve met in my life. I’m honoured to have served with you. I call you trusted friends and mentors,” he said at the time.

Khan said he is overall “feeling pretty good” and “at peace” about his decision to step down as leader and sit as an independent.

Interim party leader Konrad Narth (La Vérendrye) said in an interview Thursday that Khan’s decision came as a shock, but he’s committed to bringing the party together.

Narth declined to comment about the confidence motion or what Byram may have said.

“The behind-closed-doors discussions I don’t think should be aired out in public. I think all that the public needs to see is that we’re a unified caucus,” Narth said.

Khan said his plan for now is to focus on his constituents in Fort Whyte, and that there have been conversations between him and fellow independent MLA Mark Wasyliw on potentially forming another party. Wasyliw was ousted from the NDP caucus in 2024.

“You need four members to have a party in the legislature, so maybe there’s conversation to be had on seeing if there’s opportunity there that best reflects our values and that of Manitobans,” he said.

Saunders said the PC party is split between a more progressive side and a more conservative side, and the gaps between them seem to be getting wider.

“They need to really think about where they’re going and what they stand for, and why Manitobans should vote for them. What is their plan? And they seem to be scrambling and can’t seem to get their feet underneath them,” Saunders said.

The Manitoba legislature now contains 34 NDP MLAs, 19 PC, one Liberal and three independents.

— Brandon Sun