Manitoba

Jon Gerrard eyes Manitoba Liberals' leadership

Manitoba Liberal MLA Jon Gerrard is considering running for the party’s leadership.

The River Heights MLA served as head of the party from 1998 to 2013

Jon Gerrard is eyeing leadership of the Manitoba Liberals. (Mike Aporius/Canadian Press)

Manitoba Liberal MLA Jon Gerrard is considering running for the party's leadership.

Gerrard, the MLA for River Heights, confirmed to CBC Saturday night he has eyes on the party's leadership race, but wouldn't say if it's a done deal.

"It's under consideration and I'm looking at it very seriously," Gerrard said on the phone from the Liberals' annual general meeting in Brandon, Man.

Gerrard said he wants to make sure he considers all the pros and cons.

"I'm in the process and I'm talking with a lot of people here just to get their feedback, should I run should I not? Feedback has been generally positive, but I haven't made a final decision," he said.

Gerrard served as the party's leader from 1998 to 2013.

Burrows MLA Cindy Lamoureux is the only candidate to announce a bid for the party's leadership publicly so far.

Rana Bokhari took over the party reins for Gerrard but stepped down after losing the 2016 Manitoba election. Judy Klassen is the party's current interim leader.

Klassen, the MLA for Kewatinook, is the Manitoba Liberals' first female First Nation leader.

The Liberals hold just three of the 57 seats available in the legislature.

Party members will vote for their next leader on Oct. 21.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

​Austin Grabish is a reporter for CBC News in Winnipeg. Since joining CBC in 2016, he's covered several major stories. Some of his career highlights have been documenting the plight of asylum seekers leaving America in the dead of winter for Canada and the 2019 manhunt for two teenage murder suspects. In 2021, he won an RTDNA Canada award for his investigative reporting on the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, which triggered change. Have a story idea? Email: [email protected]