Justin Trudeau
Justin Trudeau is the leader of the Liberal Party. A graduate of McGill and UBC, Trudeau initially worked as a teacher in Vancouver. Trudeau later went on to serve as the Chair of Katimavik.
Trudeau entered politics in 2008, when he was elected as the MP for the Montreal riding of Papineau. Later in 2013, Trudeau was elected as leader of the Liberal Party, becoming Prime Minister after the 2015 federal election.
The son of the late Prime Minister, Pierre-Elliot Trudeau, the more junior Trudeau has had a longstanding appearance in politics. Notably, as a political leader, Trudeau has been on both sides of Parliament, being part of the Liberal opposition from 2008-2015.
As Prime Minister, Trudeau has had his fair share of gaffes, ranging from his overdressing during his trip to India and his “blackface” gaffe. Nevertheless, Trudeau has often performed his role as a leader and assisted in navigating Canada through some difficult global developments during his tenure.
Andrew Scheer
Andrew Scheer is the leader of the Conservative Party. A graduate of the University of Regina, Scheer has previously worked in the insurance industry.
Scheer entered politics in 2004 when he became an MP for his current riding. Scheer later served as the youngest Speaker of the House of Commons in 2011, where he was questioned for his impartiality in mediating debate.
Since 2015, he is also serving as the current leader of the Opposition. While serving as the interim leader between 2015-2016, Scheer was officially elected as the leader of the Conservative Party in 2017.
Scheer has been noted by some critics as a more conservative “Blue Tory.” As a result of this, he is often highly critical of many left-leaning policies that were put in place by Prime Minister Trudeau. To a certain extent, such comments describing Scheer have proven to be quite apt. Scheer has certainly acted as a vocal figurehead for the Conservative party in recent years and has proven a tough critic of the Liberal party and Trudeau.
Elizabeth May
A graduate of Dalhousie Law School and a past lawyer, May has been the leader of the Green Party since 2006.
May made her first appearance in government by working as an Associate General Counsel for the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, before becoming a Senior Policy Advisor to the Federal Minister of the Environment in 1986.
Having been a member of Canada’s environmental movement since the 1970s, May became the Executive Director of the Sierra Club of Canada until 2006, when she stepped down to run for leadership of the Green Party.Taking into account her activist experiences and her position as a leader of the Green Party, May has brought a variety of environmental and social issues to the forefront of Canadian Politics, and has certainly served as an apt representative for social and environmental issues on the Federal level.
Jagmeet Singh
Jagmeet Singh is the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP). A graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School, Singh was previously a criminal lawyer, both working at his own firm and delivering pro bono legal counsel for people and community organizations.
Singh began his political career when he ran to be an MPP with the NDP in the Ontario provincial election in 2011. Singh later jumped to Federal politics when he replaced Thomas Mulcair to become the leader of the NDP in 2016.
Singh is notably the first person of a visible minority group to lead a major Canadian political party on a permanent basis. Self-identifying as a progressive and social democrat, Singh has been commended by commentators as “poised and perfect” in the face of racism and social issues.While Singh has encountered trouble in drumming up political cohesion and support within the NDP, his illustrative personal background in social justice and law certainly demonstrates his ability to be the figurehead for the more socially progressive views of the NDP.
Yves-François Blanchet
A graduate of the Université de Montréal, Blanchet has been the leader of the Bloc Québécois party since January 2019.
Blanchet has been involved in politics since 2008, first serving as a representative of Drummond, Quebec, and then the district of Johnson, Quebec four years later. Blanchet was the only candidate to run for the Bloc Québécois party leadership in 2018, marking an interesting turn for the party, which had been declining in popularity across Quebec since 2015.
The party has had to focus on issues aside from its traditional call for Quebec’s separation from Canada in order to revive its popularity. Mainly, these issues centre around defending the interests of Quebec (such as keeping federal powers from interfering in Quebec’s controversial Bill 21). As of October 15, 2019, poll trackers show that the Bloc has been effective in captivating Quebecers’ attention, coming close behind the Liberals in Quebec. The future of the party has yet to be seen- but one thing is for sure- the party that was once deemed “dead” has definitely made a come back.
Maxime Bernier
Maxime Bernier is the leader of the People’s Party. A graduate of Université du Québec à Montréal and the University of Ottawa, and a previously practicing lawyer, Bernier has been an MP for Beauce, Quebec since 2006.
Like his opponents, Bernier has had a fair share of experience in politics, having served as Minister of Industry, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of State for Small Business and Tourism in his time with the Conservative Party. After losing the Conservative leadership race to Andrew Scheer in 2015, Bernier left the Conservative party in 2018, and went on to found his own party, The People’s Party of Canada, shortly thereafter.
Although this is the first federal election for the People’s Party, the party and its leader have stirred quite a bit of controversy across Canada since hitting the campaign trail. This controversy has been caused by the Party’s extreme far-right views, such as ending official multiculturalism in Canada. Despite the controversy, Bernier’s platform has been gaining traction amongst some Canadians, and have made his party one to watch this federal election.
Liked this snapshot of who the candidates are ? We also highly recommend you check out Pollenize’s fun, non-partisan take on the candidates here.
