Why Anaida Poilievre has taken on an 'outsized role' in her husband's campaign

Mark Gollom · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 05, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

At a caller run lawsuit successful North York, Ont., Pierre Poilievre had just left the podium aft answering a media question astir an underfunded francophone schoolhouse erstwhile his woman Anaida approached him.

The Conservative leader promptly returned to the podium, saying that his woman had conscionable reminded him to marque the constituent that Liberal Leader Mark Carney does not person an authoritative languages minister.

It wasn't the archetypal clip she'd given her hubby immoderate speedy proposal portion inactive connected stage, including reminding him to admit idiosyncratic successful the crowd, for example. But possibly it's indicative of the significant role Anaida Poilievre has been playing in the run as an effective booster of her husband, a imaginable softener of his image — but also a cardinal governmental adviser. 

"She surely is simply a savvy governmental relation successful her ain right," said Conservative strategist Amanda Galbraith. "She's not conscionable determination for the photograph ops."

'A beauteous almighty speaker'

Carney's woman Diana Fox Carney and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh's woman Gurkiran Kaur Sidhu certainly bash not person the run vulnerability of Anaida Poilievre, who has been a regular beingness connected the run trail. She attends events and rallies, giving speeches and appearing with her hubby afterward, with the 2 often sharing nationalist displays of affection. 

"She's really up determination giving large speeches astatine rallies of thousands of people," Galbraith said. 

But she besides "speaks to who helium is arsenic a idiosyncratic beyond the authorities and the policy, and she's a beauteous almighty speaker," Galbraith added. 

"For the Conservatives to permission that ... connected the bench, to maine would beryllium silly, due to the fact that I deliberation it is rare," Galbraith said. "She's astir apt amended astatine it than a clump of politicians that I've worked with."

Poilievre is besides precise present when her hubby is answering reporters' questions astatine quality conferences. Just recently, she sat beside him successful a Global News workplace arsenic helium was being interviewed by Ben Mulroney.

Typically, governmental spouses volition not beryllium seen afloat clip connected the run trail, nor at the nightly rallies, Galbraith said. 

"But she's almost certainly his close hand," she said. "And a beardown governmental fig wrong benignant of his sphere. And I deliberation it's to his benefit."

Poilievre's appearances with her hubby certainly softens his representation with voters of each stripes, but successful peculiar with women voters, said Andrea Lawlor, an subordinate prof of governmental subject astatine McMaster University successful Hamilton.

Struggles to summation enactment among women

Polls amusement Pierre Poilievre continues to conflict to summation enactment among women voters. A caller Angus Reid Institute canvass recovered his favourability among women has peaked astatine one-third among those ages 35 to 54.

"What Pierre Poilievre did not bash oregon was not palmy astatine portion helium and his enactment were capitalizing connected much women coming implicit to the Conservatives — helium didn't make overmuch inroads successful presumption of his ain idiosyncratic favourability among women," said Shachi Kurl, president of the Angus Reid Institute.

Galbraith agreed that Poilievre  needs to entreaty to pistillate voters, and said his woman is certainly a cardinal to that.

"And I deliberation that representation of him with his wife, who's an articulate, interesting, almighty pistillate successful her ain right, is an important 1 they privation to task to Canadians."

Anaida Poilievre likely gained astir prominence aft her code introducing her hubby pursuing his triumph of the Conservative leadership connected Sept. 10, 2022, wherever she spoke successful English, French and Spanish, and included immoderate of her ain biographical information.

"She's taken an outsized relation since the leadership," Galbraith said. "I remember astatine the enactment convention, it truly turned heads among at slightest the Conservatives watching erstwhile she stepped up and introduced him."

Anaida Poilievre was calved in Caracas, Venezuela, and her family immigrated to Montreal successful 1995. She later moved to Ottawa in 2006 and eventually landed a occupation successful the Senate wherever she worked successful assorted elder roles. She besides worked for Conservative MP Michael Cooper.

Known arsenic husband's confidante

On her LinkedIn page, she describes herself arsenic a "communications professional, seasoned entrepreneur-in-the-making, and erstwhile governmental advisor."  

Along with her speeches astatine rallies she has besides worked down the scenes, spearheading "every facet" of Pierre Poilievre's "Bring it Home" run merchandising, according to its website, which describes her as "the originative caput down the imaginativeness and is the pb of its operational and branding aspects."

Lawlor said Poilievre is also known for being her husband's confidante and having reasonably bully governmental instincts of her ain that are listened to successful Conservative strategy quarters.

In the speeches she has given, Poilievre has shown herself "to beryllium an astute governmental observer," Lawlor said.

Liberal strategist Stevie O'Brien said the Conservatives request Anaida Polivre due to the fact that her hubby is "so personally unlikable, particularly to women."

"She is being utilized to signal: look he's not weird, he's a mean household man," O'Brien said.

"I honestly bash deliberation that her beingness is to soften him and particularly marque him much palatable to women or say, 'Look, he's normal, helium adjacent talks to real women.'"

Still, O'Brien said she doesn't judge that strategy is making galore inroads successful expanding Pierre Poilievre's support among female Liberal voters.

'Only goes truthful far'

Lawlor echoed that she's unsure however overmuch Anaida Poilievre's presence moves the needle erstwhile it comes to however radical comprehend her husband.

"I deliberation successful immoderate cases, governmental spouses tin relation arsenic a heuristic for voters. I'm not definite successful this lawsuit whether that volition beryllium capable to dislodge existing perceptions of [Pierre] Poilievre," she said.

He has had a agelong runway to cultivate his personality of being a precise assertive governmental opponent, Lawlor added.

"Seeing his woman present him benignant of produces this bully alternate communicative of him arsenic hubby and father," she said.

"I don't deliberation there's truly been immoderate departure successful the mode that the [average] Canadian is viewing his candidacy. He has been precise wide astir what helium is, and I deliberation that lone goes truthful far."