Conservative MP Marilyn Gladu crosses floor to Liberals
OTTAWA — Conservative MP Marilyn Gladu announced her decision to cross the floor to the Liberals on Wednesday, becoming the fourth Conservative to cross to the governing party in recent months.
“This past year has been like no other that Canada has ever faced, and I’ve heard clearly from constituents that you want serious leadership and a real plan to bring a stronger and more independent Canadian economy,” said Gladu in a statement.
“That is why I have decided to join Prime Minister Mark Carney and Canada’s new government as the newest member of his caucus.”
In a statement on Wednesday, Carney said he looks forward to working with Gladu.
“In a time of global economic uncertainty, Canada’s success will depend on how we build ambition into progress and strengths into sustained advantage,” he said. “Marilyn brings the practical, results-driven leadership this effort demands.”
At this important moment for our country’s future, Canadians with a broad range of experience and perspectives are uniting to build Canada strong. I am honoured to welcome Marilyn Gladu today as the newest member of this government and our Liberal caucus.
— Mark Carney (@MarkJCarney) April 8, 2026
In a time of global… pic.twitter.com/leQXxRL6VO
During a meeting in his office in Ottawa on Wednesday, Carney officially welcomed Gladu to his caucus. The two were joined by Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon, with Carney noting Solomon has worked closely with Gladu over the years.
Solomon was also involved in discussions to bring her over to the Liberals, which those efforts beginning roughly a month ago.
Gladu was not available for interviews on Wednesday. However, both Liberal and Conservative MPs told National Post that she had been feeling underutilized within the party under Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
The Liberal government has secured five floor crossers in recent months, four from the Conservatives — Gladu, Chris d’Entremont, Michael Ma and Matt Jeneroux — as well as one from the NDP, when Nunavut MP Lori Idlout crossed last month.
Gladu has represented the riding of Sarnia—Lambton–Bkejwanong since 2015, and she won her seat handily in the 2025 election with 53.1 per cent of the popular vote. Gladu also ran for leadership of the Conservatives back in 2020.
She was also a strong supporter of Poilievre’s leadership in 2022, having served as the Ontario co-chair for his campaign.
Speaking on background, a Conservative MP said Gladu’s defection from the party is “shocking” and has left the caucus stunned. They noted she was “one of the most anti-Liberal, anti-Mark Carney members of the caucus.”
As examples of her political stance, Conservative MPs pointed to Gladu’s record of opposing COVID-19 mandates, being opposed to abortion and mounting a fierce opposition to the Liberals’ latest anti-hate bill, C-9. In 2022, Gladu was also a vocal supporter of the freedom convoy protests.
Others in caucus said there is a feeling of defeat.
“It’s not sustainable,” one MP said when it came to the matter of members continuing to defect to the Liberals.
“Something has to happen for the good of the party.”
A third MP, also speaking on background, said while Gladu’s decision was disappointing, they believed many were still behind Poilievre and that he was the party’s best chance at winning.
Poilievre is also set to lose his director of communications, Katy Merrifield, who announced her resignation this week.
Merrifield, who joined after last year’s election, was largely credited for expanding Poilievre’s media engagements to include more mainstream outlets on Parliament Hill.
National Post obtained Gladu’s letter to Conservative caucus following her crossing, where she defended her choice to her former colleagues.
“Many of you may feel disappointed in me, which I accept and understand,” she wrote. “What I would say is that in the time I have to serve in this place, I have made a choice to do the best thing for my riding, for my community’s priorities, and for the country.”
She added that “all of you know what I stand for” and that she would continue to bring her perspectives inside the government tent.
Back in January, Gladu notably backed a Conservative colleague’s petition that called for automatic byelections when a member of Parliament defects to another party.
In a statement on Wednesday, Poilievre said Carney is seizing a majority through “backroom deals” and Gladu should follow her beliefs and call a byelection in her riding.
“The people in her community voted for our Conservative vision of a Canada that is affordable, safe, and strong at home, not for the costly Liberal government she has now joined,” he said, in a post on X. “She should honour her word and let voters decide.”
Last month, after Idlout’s crossing, Government House Leader Steven MacKinnon told reporters that his party continues to court a number of opposition MPs.
“I thought Michael Ma was a surprise, but this takes the cake,” said one Liberal MP, who spoke on background.
Gladu’s floor crossing to the Liberals comes one day before the party will gather in Montreal this weekend for their annual convention. The latest addition to caucus now brings the Liberals’ seat count to 171, making Carney just one seat shy of a majority. Three byelections are scheduled to happen on April 13, including two Liberal safe seats in Toronto, and will likely put the government in majority territory.
The byelection in Terrebonne, Que., which is expected to be a close race between the Liberals and Bloc Québécois, is now less consequential to Carney’s electoral ambitions.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday in Terrebonne, Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet was asked what a win for his party in Monday’s byelection would signify.
“Since we all know now that the Liberals have the majority they wanted,” he said. “I am tempted to say that because the Liberals have this majority, the people of Terrebonne and the people of Quebec, should, could and might choose to have a stronger voice that will speak only for themselves.”
Blanchet added that Gladu’s crossing shows the ideological differences between the Liberals and the Conservatives are “getting thinner and thinner by the minute.”
A spokesperson for the Liberal party confirmed Gladu will be attending its upcoming convention in Montreal.
National Post
– with files from Christopher Nardi and Stephanie Taylor
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