An Insight to Canadian Politics: Who is Justin Trudeau & Why Should We Care?

Written By: Michael Locatelli, For The Clock

mlocatelli@plymouth.edu

No, that ‘handsome, young guy’ isn’t the President of Canada, he’s the Prime Minister. Just last week, America’s closest friend, neighbor, trading partner, and ally had an election to determine if Justin Trudeau (that young and handsome guy) would keep his seat at the head of the nation, or if he would be replaced by one of the other major party leaders. In the end, Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party won a third straight term as there are no term limits in Canadian politics. 

Contrary to the political system in the United States, Canada has four major parties that all have different ideological focuses. Justin Trudeau is the head of the Liberal Party of Canada, the Canadian version of what the Democratic party would be in the U.S. As a Canadian who’s lived in the United States going on five years now, I’ve come to understand how truly connected our two countries are. I’ve also come to understand how paramount a healthy relationship between Canada and the United States is, as our domestic and foreign policy decisions often implicate each other.  

The election results have major ramifications for the United States, as both countries look to navigate out of a global pandemic, as well as an increasingly disastrous foreign policy blunder at the hands of the Biden Administration. However, this result is very good news as both President Biden, and Prime Minister Trudeau now have years to build and develop their already fantastic working relationship. This result provides stability to the continent, as years of tensions during the Trump administration, followed by a massive turnover in U.S government has disrupted Canada and U.S. relations. But with some stability between the Trudeau and Biden administrations we can look forward to a bright future together.