Justin Trudeau on Tuesday, September 21, won the Canadian election and is slated to become prime minister for the third time.
He announced his victory on Twitter and thanked the country, despite being unable to secure absolute majority, which will likely make the path ahead harder for him.
Trudeau called the snap election last month, hoping that the smooth Covid-19 vaccine rollout he had overseen would easily see him reelected.
However, after a bumpy five weeks of campaigning, he appeared set for a repeat of the close 2019 general election that resulted in the one-time golden boy of Canadian politics clinging to power yet weakened after losing his majority in parliament.
Yet, this was supposed to be easy for the liberal politician, given his handling of the pandemic in the country and that his opponent, conservative leader Erin O’Toole, was much less experienced, despite being only a year younger — at 48 — than Trudeau.
Trudeau’s win could mean continued liberal policymaking from Canada, which in turn could benefit GCC nations, most of which have healthy economic relations with the North American country in some form or the other.
A liberal leader for Canada could also mean similar liberal thinking at the world stage, which could counter Western conservatism against the Arab world at the global level.