With MP Marilyn Gladu crossing the floor of Parliament to join the Liberals, Campaign Life Coalition is asking if this development could signify a departure from the Liberal Party’s ban on pro-life candidates instituted under Justin Trudeau.

“MP Gladu has a solid record of supporting pro-life bills,” said Jeff Gunnarson, Campaign Life's National President. “Since Justin Trudeau barred pro-life candidates from running under the Liberal banner in 2014, many Canadians have been shut out of meaningful participation in the party. If Gladu’s move signals that Prime Minister Mark Carney is charting a different course in 2026, that would be welcome news indeed.”

Gladu's parliamentary history shows she has long been a supporter of the pro-life movement. The former Conservative MP's pro-life record is as follows: Gladu appeared as a speaker at the 2017 National March for Life, she voted in favour of a defeated bill in 2021 to ban sex-selective abortion and she said yes to 2023 legislation that would have made knowingly assaulting a pregnant woman an aggravating circumstance in criminal sentencing. Additionally, she voted against the expansion of euthanasia multiple times since her first election in 2015, and when she ran in the 2020 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election, she approved of members proposing pro-life bills.

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However, this tantalizing prospect for the pro-life community was evidently dispelled by Carney, and by Gladu herself. He said Gladu will vote with the government on abortion and LGBT issues.

“I had discussions, and colleagues had discussions, with Ms. Gladu about those issues,” said Carney on April 8. “She will vote with the government if there are votes relating to any aspect of that issue, as well as the rights of Canadians to be their whole selves, to love who they love and to fully enjoy their rights under the Charters of Rights and Freedoms.”

Gladu validated Carney’s remarks on April 9 during her appearance at the 2026 Liberal National Convention in Montreal: “The Prime Minister said I will be voting with the government, and that is absolutely true. I will protect all women’s rights. Yes.”

The Catholic Register sought comment from Gladu on whether her stated pro-life convictions and voting record would remain consistent as a Liberal MP. She did not respond by press deadline.  

She was asked about her pro-life beliefs during her media scrum at the convention.

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“So, for people in Canada, I have been consistent when I said that women need to have the right to choose,” said Gladu. “I obviously have my long faith traditions, but I am ready to support the rights of women in this country.”

In addition to Gladu’s move across the aisle receiving skepticism on the basis of her past stated stances on issues, critics have highlighted Gladu’s own comments on Jan. 11 to the Petrolia Lambton Independent newspaper about the need for automatic byelections for floor crossers.

“Really, the whole point of being an MP is to represent your constituents,” she said at the time. “So, if they’re voting you in under one platform, for you to switch for whatever reasons, just seems to me to not be representing what you’re supposed to be there to represent. We elected you under this banner, and if you don’t want to be under that banner, then we deserve a chance to have a redo.”

Gladu was questioned on when she intended to resign her seat to run in a byelection.

"Well, I also said that in order for that to happen, the Elections Act has to be changed, and the Elections Act has to be changed to make sure that people will have to either sit, as you know, independence or call a by-election," she said. “That law has not been changed, and so when it does, I would be happy to do that."

A Change.org online petition calling for Gladu to resign “for breach of public trust” has garnered over 10,000 signatures as of April 14.

Carney’s Liberal government has been pushing for a majority and is now armed with a 174-seat majority thanks to decisive byelection wins in the Toronto ridings of Scarborough Southwest and University-Rosedale, and a narrow victory over the Bloc Québécois in the Quebec riding of Terrebonne on April 13.

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In a statement after securing the first Canadian parliamentary majority since 2019, the Prime Minister said, “The voters have placed trust in their new government’s plan. We accept that support with humility, determination and a clear understanding of what this moment demands.”

The likelihood of Carney achieving a majority had increased significantly when Gladu defected from the Conservatives to the Liberals on April 8. She was the fifth MP to cross the aisle to the ruling party — four Conservatives and one NDP MP — further boosting the government’s numbers.