Could Canada’s Conservative Party win back power?

WHEN JUSTIN TRUDEAU called a snap election last month, to be held on September 20th, he wagered that a grateful electorate emerging from lockdown would reward his minority Liberal government with a whopping majority. The prime minister has done a decent job of dealing with the pandemic (notwithstanding a recent spike in cases). As a share of the population, Canada’s 26,900 confirmed deaths are just over a third of those of the United States. Three in four Canadians aged 12 and older are fully vaccinated. Yet a flurry of recent polls puts Canada’s Conservatives, led by Erin O’Toole, an indefatigable if uncharismatic campaigner, within striking distance of unseating Mr Trudeau (see chart).