Nunavut MP Lori Idlout crossed the floor to join the Liberal caucus just days after she appeared as a featured guest at a rally supporting New Democratic leadership candidate Avi Lewis.Blacklock's Reporter says the two-term New Democrat announced the switch Tuesday, reducing the NDP caucus to just six MPs — the smallest in the party’s history.Idlout had spoken at a March 6 rally organized by Lewis supporters in Ottawa, where the leadership hopeful praised her as “the great Lori Idlout” and described the event as part of efforts to build momentum ahead of the next federal election. The gathering was marked by enthusiastic supporters and activists, with social media posts describing the crowd as “electric.”Following her decision to join the Liberals, Idlout said she was grateful for the reception she received in the government caucus but declined to identify any single factor behind her decision to leave the NDP.“Like with any complicated issue it wasn’t just one thing that happened,” she told reporters.The defection drew swift criticism from New Democrat leader Don Davies, who argued that MPs who switch parties should resign and seek a new mandate from voters.“To us, the decision of voters at the ballot box is a sacred trust,” Davies said. “If a Member of Parliament wants to override that decision, we believe they must go back to the voters and make that case to them and receive a renewed mandate.”.Davies also accused Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government of trying to assemble a majority in the House of Commons through behind-the-scenes negotiations rather than elections.“I am becoming increasingly concerned by the way Mr. Carney is trying to stitch together a majority government in this country,” Davies said, adding that the question of a majority government should be decided by voters, not “back-room deals cut behind closed doors in Ottawa.”With Idlout now sitting with the Liberals, the government remains two seats short of a working majority pending the results of three federal byelections scheduled for April 13 in Toronto ridings Scarborough Southwest and University-Rosedale, and in Terrebonne, Que.Prime Minister Carney praised Idlout following her defection, calling her “an extraordinary Member of Parliament,” though he did not outline any formal role she would take on within the government caucus.“She’s going to be in the Liberal caucus from now on,” Carney said.Cabinet ministers also welcomed the move. Northern Affairs Minister Rebecca Chartrand called the defection “fantastic” and congratulated Idlout for crossing the floor..Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne suggested the defections reflected broader political momentum behind the government.“People are rallying behind Prime Minister Carney,” Champagne said, adding that MPs may want to be “at the decision-making table.”Idlout’s switch follows several other MPs who have recently voted with the Liberals, including Conservatives Matt Jeneroux, Michael Ma and Chris d’Entremont.Floor crossings involving New Democrats are rare but not without precedent. In 1962, Hazen Argue, leader of the party’s predecessor the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation, resigned to join the Liberals, prompting fierce criticism from labour leaders and party figures at the time.
