Canadian PM Justin Trudeau speaks during an election campaign in Hamilton, Ontario
Ottawa/Windsor:
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday acknowledged the unpopularity of his pandemic election and intensified his call on progressive voters to back his campaign, with his bid for re-election at risk of being ruined by low turnout. done.
Opinion polls show Trudeau’s Liberals neck-and-neck with the Erin O’Toole-led opposition Conservatives ahead of Monday’s vote, suggesting that exiting the vote will be crucial. Low turnout has historically favored the Conservatives.
Trudeau made a rare concession at a campaign stop in Windsor, Ontario on Friday that a pandemic election was not ideal, but urged supporters to vote despite any misgivings.
“I understand the frustration that some people are feeling. They want things to go back to normal and elections are not going back to normal,” he said, as he walked outside the anti-vaccination mandate venue Was.
“It’s time for choice, it’s time for decision, it’s time for action,” he said, portraying his party as the best option to end the pandemic, fight climate change and grow the economy. did.
Trudeau, 49, called for early elections on August 15, demanding a parliamentary majority after two years of a minority government in which he had to work with other parties to govern. But now he is scrambling to save his job.
Two senior liberals with a direct role in the campaign told Reuters they were concerned that Canadians might focus more on returning to their routines – rather than politics – and are therefore less motivated to vote.
The pandemic is accelerating in some parts of the country and voters will face longer than usual lines on Election Day due to fewer polling stations and farther requirements.
O’Toole, 48, a former cabinet minister who has led his party for just over a year, avoided alienating his centre-right base, with a disciplined campaign appealing to centrist voters proved to be competitive.
Darrell Bricker, chief executive of Ipsos Public Affairs, said, “It’s not about convincing people that they should think about voting for you now. It’s about voting for the people who commit to vote for you.” Huh.”
“Voting is going to be everything.”
According to Nanos Research’s latest election poll, liberals lead the Conservatives at 31.9% to 30.4%, with New Democrats in third place at 20.3%. Trudeau has a slight lead over O’Toole as the preferred prime minister from 29.8% at 27.8%.
But opinion polls do not always reflect what happens on election night, as voting can drastically affect the number of seats.
“If the turnout is unusual, we could have many more surprises on Monday night,” Philippe Fournier, a polling analyst at the 338Canada.com website, told the Reuters Global Markets Forum on Thursday.
closer than expected
Trudeau took a comfortable lead in the election going into the campaign, but it has disappeared as many voters view the election as an unnecessary one.
He also faces a challenge from New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Jagmeet Singh, 42, who beats Trudeau and O’Toole in individual popularity and appeals to the same voters that centre-left liberals need. . Progressive US Senator Bernie Sanders, a two-time presidential candidate, supported Singh on Friday.
If enough voters elect Singh, it could split the progressive camp and allow O’Toole to take power. Trudeau on Friday called on progressive voters to choose liberals instead of the NDP to prevent the Conservatives from winning.
“The Liberal Party is not only the only party that can stop the conservatives, but we are also the only party that has a real plan to work,” he said.
Trudeau’s rally call was reinforced by former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who tweeted her support for his progressive leadership on Friday. After this, former US President Barack Obama gave an endorsement on Thursday.
O’Toole, campaigning in London, Ontario, where the far-right People’s Party of Canada (PPC) is gaining traction, again scoffed at Trudeau’s decision to call the election during a pandemic, calling the Liberal leader selfish and portrayed as power hungry.
O’Toole needs to convince PPC supporters that his only hope is to remove Trudeau.
“We deserve change. And if people vote for anything other than the Conservative Party of Canada for that change, they’re voting for Justin Trudeau,” O’Toole said.
Meanwhile, oddsmakers are betting that Trudeau will indeed win his third election. The oddschecker said Friday that they give liberals an 80% chance of taking the most seats.
“We must have done all this to get the same results as last time,” said Daniel Beland, director of the Institute for the Study of Canada at McGill University in Montreal.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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