His good looks, fluent bilingualism, and success as Minister of Finance made him a strong candidate to succeed Frank McKenna for the Liberal leadership in 1998. After announcing he was considering the possibility, he opted not to contest the leadership.
In 2004, he became Chief Justice of the Court Martial appeals court and a member of the Canadian Judicial Council. He died in 2014 after almost ten years as a member of the council, where he served as a member of the Education Committee and the Judicial Conduct Committee.[1]
Blanchard died on June 27, 2014, after a short illness.[2]