Jody Wilson-Raybould and Jane Philpott took another step towards their place in history as a political footnote by announcing they were both running again as Independent candidates.

Their separate announcements were made a few minutes apart, in a political choreography rarely seen outside of political parties, with white outfits and coordinated messaging.  It was remarkable.

Also remarkable are the reasons why they are doing so: namely, Justin Trudeau's handling of the SNC-Lavalin affair.  Their double candidacy is guaranteeing that the alleged political interference into the criminal prosecution will be part of the election narrative.

It would have been better for the opposition parties if Wilson-Raybould and/or Philpott had joined one of them.  It would have been easier strategically and tactically.  But still.

Adding to Trudeau's woes is the fact that a Quebec court judge ruled that there was enough evidence to send SNC-Lavalin to trial.  The Montreal engineering firm might appeal that ruling, or plead that it is now impossible to get a fair trial.  Net result, the story is still alive.

And the Liberals are still leaving themselves some wiggle room to stop the proceedings.  Justice Minister David Lametti is staying mum about whether or not the government is still considering offering SNC-Lavalin a DPA.  Legally, he can still do so anytime, until there is a verdict in the criminal case.

Political pressures are still ongoing.  Lametti's colleagues, Infrastructure Minister François-Philippe Champagne, reacted to the ruling by raising concerns about the potential damage a criminal trial could cause SNC-Lavalin.  Basically repeating what Justin Trudeau was telling Jody Wilson-Raybould a few months ago.

Still, Wilson-Raybould and Philpott are facing an uphill battle indeed.  In the past twelve elections, only seven candidates successfully ran and won as Independents.  That is out of 3608 MPs elected in that same period, an effective rate of 0.0019%.

But even if it were possible, rarely do Independent MPs get to play any kind of meaningful role in our system.  What did John Nunziata do?  Gilles Bernier?  André Arthur?  Tony Roman?

Only Chuck Cadman comes to mind, when, on May 19, 2005, Cadman cast a deciding tie vote to save Paul Martin's minority Liberal government.  Sadly, Cadman died of cancer less than two months later.  The Martin government survived until November when it lost confidence of the House, and the Liberals were defeated in the ensuing election.  The odds of another Cadman-like scenario are very low.

So, the chances of Philpott and Wilson-Raybould both winning and having a meaningful role thereafter are slim to say the least.  Politically, it would have been easier and better for them to find a new political home.  Even creating a new party would have given them more of an upside than their current status as independent candidates, who have stricter restrictions than their branded counterparts.

Still, their attempt at shaking up the system is remarkable.

Even though it is doomed.

Photo Credit: CBC News