Canada elections: All is not well, admits Trudeau
WHITBY, ONTARIO/ TORONTO: Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, trying to retain power after scandals dimmed his image, on Friday said he was fighting for every vote in an election next week and conceded his main rival Andrew Scheer could win.
Polls show Trudeau’s Liberals are locked in a tie with the opposition Conservatives ahead of the vote on Monday and may not capture enough seats for a majority. That would leave them in a weakened position, reliant on smaller parties to govern.
A Nanos Research poll for the Globe and Mail and CTV released on Friday put the Conservatives on 31.6% public support and the Liberals on 31.5%. The left-leaning New Democrats were on 19.0%.
Trudeau has spent much of the campaign in Ontario, which accounts for 108 of the 338 seats in the House of Commons. The Liberals hold 76 of those seats and need to retain them to stand a chance of winning.
“I’m not taking any vote for granted,” the Canadian PM told reporters in the town of Whitby, east of Toronto, during a campaign event. “There is a chance there could be a Conservative government.”
TIES WITH INDIA WILL BE A PRIORITY IN CANADA
India’s top diplomat in Canada is optimistic that the next government will focus on strengthening relations with India. Vikas Swarup, the Indian high commissioner to Ottawa, said, “Regardless of who wins the election, relations with India will be a top priority for the next government.”
BUTTS DEFENDS OBAMA MOVE, POINTS TO MODI
After criticism over former US president Barack Obama’s endorsement of Trudeau, Gerald Butts, former principal secretary and close confidante of Trudeau, defended the move by reminding the opposition party of their support for Indian PM Narendra Modi before India’s 2019 election.
“For India to realise its potential, it needs the courageous & visionary leadership of Prime Minister Modi. Proud to stand with him,”former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper tweeted in January.