A few months back, Justin Trudeau looked like an unlikely candidate to be Canada’s next prime minister. But Canada’s Liberal Party has now won a majority at the general election, ending nearly a decade of Conservative rule. Back in August when the Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper called an election for 19 October, the social-democratic NDP was first in the polls, the Conservatives good second and the Liberals third. Justin Trudeau’s majority win is a historic feat in Canadian politics, because a third-running party has never before won a majority.
So what were the key issues in this election? Not much. The choice seemed to be between wanting ‘more of the same’ or wanting ‘change’, especially in leadership style. On some issues, the difference between all three major parties was cosmetic. For example, on welfare policies (such as family allowances and tax credits) all three major parties agree essentially on the same concept. The question is not how anymore, but rather how much money to give to families.
On other issues such as the latest controversial anti-terrorism law (the C-51 Bill), the social-democratic NDP have a different position to the Conservatives and the centrist Liberals.
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