Ignatieff resigns

Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff resigned this morning after the party’s historic electoral loss on May 2. The Liberals were reduced to 34 seats in the House of Commons down from 77 and won only 18.9 per cent of the popular vote.

According to CBC, Ignatieff said in a news conference that he will “not remain leader of party” and “will arrange succession in due time.”

Despite his party’s disastrous results, Ignatieff believes that four more years of Stephen Harper as Prime Minister, in combination with four years of NDP opposition, is just what the Liberals need to come back stronger for the next election.

He was quoted by CBC as saying, “I think the surest guarantee of the future for the Liberal Party of Canada is four years of Conservative government and four years of NDP opposition.”

Though he attributed much of his loss to the attack ads put out by the Conservatives, Ignatieff said, “the only thing Canadians like less than a loser is a sore loser, and I go out of politics with my head held high.”

— Compiled by Amanda Steiner