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Pierre Cyr

Pierre Cyr is vice president of public affairs at FleishmanHillard HighRoad (FHR) in Ottawa. He is a former director of operations to Liberal political leaders and chief of staff to senior Liberal provincial cabinet ministers in Ontario.

On par voter turnout an important outcome in pandemic election

  • With mail-in ballots now counted, it seems about 17 million Canadians took the time to vote in the 2021 federal election. While some have
Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 29, 2021
The count of special ballots from national, international, Canadian Forces, and incarcerated electors on Sept. 20, 2021, at the Elections Canada Distribution Centre in Ottawa. The average voter turnout for the past eight federal elections (including this one) dating back to 2000 is just over 62 per cent—that puts 2021 voter turnout right on par with the average, writes Pierre Cyr. The Hill Times photograph by Sam Garcia

On par voter turnout an important outcome in pandemic election

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 29, 2021
  • With mail-in ballots now counted, it seems about 17 million Canadians took the time to vote in the 2021 federal election. While some have

On par voter turnout an important outcome in pandemic election

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 29, 2021
  • With mail-in ballots now counted, it seems about 17 million Canadians took the time to vote in the 2021 federal election. While some have
The count of special ballots from national, international, Canadian Forces, and incarcerated electors on Sept. 20, 2021, at the Elections Canada Distribution Centre in Ottawa. The average voter turnout for the past eight federal elections (including this one) dating back to 2000 is just over 62 per cent—that puts 2021 voter turnout right on par with the average, writes Pierre Cyr. The Hill Times photograph by Sam Garcia

A tale of two campaigns: central campaigns are buzzing, but local ones are struggling

  • No matter what stop of the campaign trail our party leaders are on, important local and regional issues have been missing from political platforms
Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 13, 2021
Justin Trudeau's, left, Liberals and Erin O'Toole's Conservative have the strongest organizations overall, but both continue to have significant regional gaps, writes Pierre Cyr. Jagmeet Singh's NDP has resorted to TikTok and food trucks to create buzz and distract Canadians from an obvious truth—many of their ground campaigns are but a name on a ballot. The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade

A tale of two campaigns: central campaigns are buzzing, but local ones are struggling

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 13, 2021
  • No matter what stop of the campaign trail our party leaders are on, important local and regional issues have been missing from political platforms

A tale of two campaigns: central campaigns are buzzing, but local ones are struggling

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 13, 2021
  • No matter what stop of the campaign trail our party leaders are on, important local and regional issues have been missing from political platforms
Justin Trudeau's, left, Liberals and Erin O'Toole's Conservative have the strongest organizations overall, but both continue to have significant regional gaps, writes Pierre Cyr. Jagmeet Singh's NDP has resorted to TikTok and food trucks to create buzz and distract Canadians from an obvious truth—many of their ground campaigns are but a name on a ballot. The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade

Unpacking party platform strategies, timing important in a tight two-way race

  • I spent most of my political career as a ground war operative specializing in byelections, get out the vote efforts, election readiness committees, nomination
Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 6, 2021
From left: Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and NDP Jagmeet Singh. The approaches and themes to these three party platforms are important to understand, particularly in the tight two-way race between the Liberals and Tories that we are seeing today, writes Pierre Cyr. The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade, Sam Garcia

Unpacking party platform strategies, timing important in a tight two-way race

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 6, 2021
  • I spent most of my political career as a ground war operative specializing in byelections, get out the vote efforts, election readiness committees, nomination

Unpacking party platform strategies, timing important in a tight two-way race

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 6, 2021
  • I spent most of my political career as a ground war operative specializing in byelections, get out the vote efforts, election readiness committees, nomination
From left: Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and NDP Jagmeet Singh. The approaches and themes to these three party platforms are important to understand, particularly in the tight two-way race between the Liberals and Tories that we are seeing today, writes Pierre Cyr. The Hill Times photographs by Andrew Meade, Sam Garcia

Length of election period key consideration for Liberals

  • With the House of Commons now recessed, the unofficial election campaign has already started. As public health guidelines ease due to lower case counts
Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | July 22, 2021
Given the current standing of the Liberal Party in the polls, the political cannibalism occurring in other parties, and most importantly our pandemic reality, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau may be tempted to request a shorter writ period this time around. The Hill Times photograph by Sam Garcia

Length of election period key consideration for Liberals

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | July 22, 2021
  • With the House of Commons now recessed, the unofficial election campaign has already started. As public health guidelines ease due to lower case counts

Length of election period key consideration for Liberals

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | July 22, 2021
  • With the House of Commons now recessed, the unofficial election campaign has already started. As public health guidelines ease due to lower case counts
Given the current standing of the Liberal Party in the polls, the political cannibalism occurring in other parties, and most importantly our pandemic reality, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau may be tempted to request a shorter writ period this time around. The Hill Times photograph by Sam Garcia

Patient groups play an important role in vaccine rollout

  • Along with many Canadians, I’ve been closely watching the provincial approaches to COVID-19 vaccine rollouts. This is both out of self-interest, as someone who
Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | May 12, 2021
Immunodeficient patients are more vulnerable, even in non-pandemic times, and it’s a no-brainer to prioritize them for vaccines, writes Pierre Cyr, pulling from his experience with a rare neuromuscular disorder and working in federal and provincial public health policy. Pexels photograph by Gustavo Fring

Patient groups play an important role in vaccine rollout

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | May 12, 2021
  • Along with many Canadians, I’ve been closely watching the provincial approaches to COVID-19 vaccine rollouts. This is both out of self-interest, as someone who

Patient groups play an important role in vaccine rollout

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | May 12, 2021
  • Along with many Canadians, I’ve been closely watching the provincial approaches to COVID-19 vaccine rollouts. This is both out of self-interest, as someone who
Immunodeficient patients are more vulnerable, even in non-pandemic times, and it’s a no-brainer to prioritize them for vaccines, writes Pierre Cyr, pulling from his experience with a rare neuromuscular disorder and working in federal and provincial public health policy. Pexels photograph by Gustavo Fring

The case for a pandemic war cabinet

  • The government resources required both domestically and globally to combat COVID-19 are in many ways equivalent to those needed in times of war. While
Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 30, 2020
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau presides over a minority Parliament. His government has done its steady best to try and make a minority Parliament function during the pandemic, says Pierre Cyr. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

The case for a pandemic war cabinet

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 30, 2020
  • The government resources required both domestically and globally to combat COVID-19 are in many ways equivalent to those needed in times of war. While

The case for a pandemic war cabinet

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | September 30, 2020
  • The government resources required both domestically and globally to combat COVID-19 are in many ways equivalent to those needed in times of war. While
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau presides over a minority Parliament. His government has done its steady best to try and make a minority Parliament function during the pandemic, says Pierre Cyr. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Ambiguous path towards welcoming international students requires more urgency from feds

  • With the new school year fast approaching, Canadian colleges and universities have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to find a path forward for
Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | August 19, 2020
Hundreds of thousands of international students still do not know if they can come to Canada in a couple of weeks to start their studies.  Photograph courtesy of Unsplash

Ambiguous path towards welcoming international students requires more urgency from feds

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | August 19, 2020
  • With the new school year fast approaching, Canadian colleges and universities have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to find a path forward for

Ambiguous path towards welcoming international students requires more urgency from feds

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | August 19, 2020
  • With the new school year fast approaching, Canadian colleges and universities have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to find a path forward for
Hundreds of thousands of international students still do not know if they can come to Canada in a couple of weeks to start their studies.  Photograph courtesy of Unsplash

Post-secondary institutions need further funding boost from feds

  • The federal government recently announced two important moves to help Canada’s post-secondary institutions through the COVID-19 pandemic. Ottawa unveiled $450-million in funding to Canada’s
Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | June 4, 2020
Finance Minister Bill Morneau, pictured in the West Block Chamber on May 13 for a special COVID-19 committee meeting. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Post-secondary institutions need further funding boost from feds

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | June 4, 2020
  • The federal government recently announced two important moves to help Canada’s post-secondary institutions through the COVID-19 pandemic. Ottawa unveiled $450-million in funding to Canada’s

Post-secondary institutions need further funding boost from feds

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | June 4, 2020
  • The federal government recently announced two important moves to help Canada’s post-secondary institutions through the COVID-19 pandemic. Ottawa unveiled $450-million in funding to Canada’s
Finance Minister Bill Morneau, pictured in the West Block Chamber on May 13 for a special COVID-19 committee meeting. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Shedding the skin of government

  • After almost four years of bearing the skin of government, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau seems to have shed that skin, become again a leader
Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | July 15, 2019
Prime minister Justin Trudeau, pictured on June 17, 2019, in Ottawa with his director of communications Kate Purchase and chief of staff Katie Telford. Pierre Cyr says the late Ted Sorensen, principal secretary and confidant to former U.S. president John F. Kennedy, had some of the best advice for success in politics: never forget your privileged role, treat the office that you represent with seriousness, but for god’s sake do not forget where you come from, and have some humour. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Shedding the skin of government

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | July 15, 2019
  • After almost four years of bearing the skin of government, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau seems to have shed that skin, become again a leader

Shedding the skin of government

Opinion | BY PIERRE CYR | July 15, 2019
  • After almost four years of bearing the skin of government, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau seems to have shed that skin, become again a leader
Prime minister Justin Trudeau, pictured on June 17, 2019, in Ottawa with his director of communications Kate Purchase and chief of staff Katie Telford. Pierre Cyr says the late Ted Sorensen, principal secretary and confidant to former U.S. president John F. Kennedy, had some of the best advice for success in politics: never forget your privileged role, treat the office that you represent with seriousness, but for god’s sake do not forget where you come from, and have some humour. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade
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