On Sunday, polls opened in Canada for a general election pitting prime minister Justin Trudeau against a candidate from Conservative party. Trudeau called the election in mid-August, betting on his management during the pandemic, which he claimed could get him to win big in parliament. 

However, according to national tracking surveys during the past few days, there seems to be a turnaround in that Conservative Party’s Erin O’Toole has almost reached his way into a statistical tie with Justin Trudeau. 

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A political expert told CNN that “holding a snap election in the summer during a global pandemic has angered many voters who cannot identify a compelling ballot box issue to justify the undertaking.”

O’Toole attacked Trudeau during the campaign, saying, “Every Canadian has met a Justin Trudeau in their lives — privileged, entitled and always looking out for number one. He was looking out for number one when he called this expensive and unnecessary election in the middle of a pandemic. That’s not leadership, that’s self-interest. And it’s Justin Trudeau through and through.” 

Trudeau responded in a similar tone and said, “I’m going to let him and his proxies and the anti-vaxxer movement and the gun lobby and the anti-choice crowd continue to attack me, fine. I’m going to stay focused on Canadians.”

Similar to the US experience, following meaningful engagement by candidates on issues, one can observe polarisation among voters on cultural issues like abortion rights, climate change, and gun control. Furthermore, a small but stubborn majority has been opposing COVID-19 protocols like mask and vaccine mandates. Only recently, Trudeau was attacked by a protester as he threw gravel on him out of anger towards pandemic policies. 

As far as national support is concerned, Trudeau and O’Toole are most likely capable of forming a government. However, Jagmeet Singh from New Democratic Party (NDP) polls well and has the potential to hold the balance of power too.