Arno Kopecky

6 days ago | nationalobserver.com | Arno Kopecky

Coming amid a campaign that has avoided the topic at the best of times, it's no big surprise that climate change was not the major story to come out of the leaders' debates in Montreal this week. Nor was Poilievre's performance the breakout story, though Canadians did see a softer-than-usual version of the Conservative leader come to the brink of tears in his emotional closing address on the second night.

1 week ago | ledevoir.com | Arno Kopecky

Reporter spécialisé en environnement, Arno Kopecky suit la campagne de Pierre Poilievre pour le Canada’s National Observer, afin de rendre compte de ce qu’il voit et entend dans les rassemblements du Parti conservateur un peu partout au pays. Un gaillard chauve et joyeusement effronté s’ébat parmi les milliers de personnes présentes à un rassemblement politique de Pierre Poilievre à Windsor, en Ontario, diffusant en direct ses pitreries depuis un iPhone fixé à une perche.

1 week ago | nationalobserver.com | Arno Kopecky

In Windsor, I walked past Pleb and entered the party without interrupting. The cavernous space inside echoed with rockabilly tunes and sporadic "Bring It Home" chants. I chatted with nearby strangers as we waited for Poilievre to arrive. The guy who runs communications for the Conservative campaign spotted me and urged me to go to the journalist pen, a cordoned-off area in front of the podium where reporters can get the best view of Poilievre, but also can't speak to the public.

2 weeks ago | nationalobserver.com | Arno Kopecky

Poilievre transformed these statistics into a lurid series of anecdotes that resembled a spoken-word episode of CrimeStoppers. He told the story of a police officer murdered two days after Christmas by a man out on bail; in 2018, a 14-year-old boy was killed by two brothers who were also out on bail; there was a young woman murdered five years ago by her ex-boyfriend, who is currently applying for bail. Each of these stories provoked resounding boos from the audience.

2 weeks ago | ledevoir.com | Arno Kopecky

Lundi 7 avril, ils sont 12 000 pour voir Pierre Poilievre dans un entrepôt caverneux de la banlieue d’Edmonton. C’est, de loin, le plus grand rassemblement de la campagne. Des hordes de véhicules envahissent les stationnements environnants et bloquent la circulation. Il faut sortir du taxi et parcourir le dernier kilomètre à pied, comme l’ont fait des centaines d’autres personnes. Nul ne semble s’en formaliser. Une fois engouffrée à l’intérieur, la foule se transforme en armée.