The Star’s view
Under Justin Trudeau, Liberals are rekindling the sense among Canadians that we can do better. He should be prime minister.
It was no great surprise to learn last weekend that voters were flocking in record numbers to advance polls to cast their ballots in Monday’s election. There’s a palpable sense that change is badly needed after nine and a half years of the Harper government. And there’s a growing feeling among progressive-minded voters that the Liberals under Justin Trudeau offer the best alternative.
Last Saturday we laid out in detail our reasons for preferring the Liberals in this election. We believe they are putting forward the most constructive solutions to Canada’s economic and social challenges. And, most importantly, we believe they have stood up for fundamental Canadian values of decency and inclusiveness in the face of a shameful Conservative attempt to divide voters with fear of threats both external (terrorism) and internal (niqab-wearing Muslim women).
If the polls can be believed (and that’s still a big if ), the attempts to sow division haven’t worked very well. Most voters haven’t fallen for the Conservative pitch, and about two-thirds of them reject the party’s socially regressive and economically complacent approach.
Beyond the specifics of each party’s policies, voters should also turn away from the Conservatives’ implicit message that Canada as a whole just shouldn’t aspire to much. They have spent so much time and energy whittling away at the very concept of government that they devalue the idea of collective achievement itself.
The Liberals under Trudeau’s leadership are rekindling the sense among Canadians that we can do better, and that government can be an essential part of that effort. As we wrote last week, they offer hope for “those who believe Canada can be more generous, more ambitious and more successful.” That’s no small thing.
Justin Trudeau himself has been the biggest surprise of this longest campaign in living memory. It’s worth recalling that 11 weeks ago, when Harper called the vote for Oct.19, the conventional wisdom was that it would be mainly a two-horse race between the Conservatives and the New Democrats, who appeared to have seized the progressive mantle.
Months of relentless Conservative attacks on Trudeau as “just not ready” had taken their toll. He himself fed into the narrative with some flippant remarks and ill-judged political moves.
But over the course of the campaign the Liberal leader has emerged as a sure-footed, confident figure who is easily a match for his older and more experienced rivals. His comparative youth, once a liability, now seems like a genuine advantage as voters hunger for generational change.
This all matters. When we go to the polls on Monday we won’t be voting for policies, but for people. And we want to know that the people we entrust with power have the brains, the character and the values to deal with the many unpredictable challenges that will arise in the coming months and years.
From what we can see of Justin Trudeau, he is ready to meet those challenges and has assembled an impressive team under the Liberal banner to help him do it.
The NDP, which entered the campaign so strongly, has faded to the point where it can no longer claim to be the most convincing national alternative to the Conservatives.
Again, unless the pollsters have it terribly wrong, the New Democrats appear to have fallen back precisely because they chose to play it safe with their balanced-budget guarantee. That also speaks to voters’ longing for substantial change.
A week ago we wrote that “it’s time to get Canada back on a more hopeful, more progressive course.” Voters who agree should unite behind the Liberals on Monday and give them a strong mandate to chart a new course.