Trudeau should have easily coasted into a second-term, as Canadian Prime Ministers usually do.
Instead, he and his Liberal Party spent the 40-day campaign trying to persuade Canadian voters to give them another chance.
Trudeau’s polished image was weakened by multiple scandals that has left him vulnerable.
His main challenger, Andrew Scheer of the Conservative Party, tried to paint Trudeau as a phony.
In the end, voters pushed back against both major parties, giving each less than a third of the national vote for the time in Canadian history.
And instead, propping up some of the smaller parties. The Bloc Quebecois in the French-language province.
And the leftist NPD, under Jagmeet Singh, the first-ever person of color running for Prime Minister.
As for the issues, Canadians voted on healthcare, and safety, and taxes.
High cost of living featured heavily in the debates. So, too, did climate change. A sensitive topic in this energy-exporting nation.
Despite Canada’s contributing troops to NATO and increased tensions with both the U.S. and China, foreign policy featured very little in the minds of Canadian voters.
Ultimately, the election was a referendum on Justin Trudeau.
“Tonight, we chose to move Canada forward. Tonight, Canadians have charted a path for the future. And I know we will walk it together,” said Trudeau
Trudeau’s campaign slog urged voters to “Choose Forward”. But forward might not be such a straight line.
The Liberals lost their clear majority. Trudeau will now lead a minority government. Which means he’ll have to make some concessions.
