How Justin Trudeau became Canada’s most unwanted leader

Almost 10 years in power is a long, long time. And in this period, Canada’s Justin Trudeau, the country’s ‘golden boy’, has lost his lustre with most Canadians now hating the 53-year-old leader.

This hate and discontent against Trudeau finally culminated on Monday (January 6) with him announcing that he would leave office as soon as his party, the Liberals, chooses a new leader.

While the country prepares for a Trudeau-less future — he was in power for almost 10 years — we try to analyse the many reasons why many consider him the country’s worst PM in over half a century.

Trudeau’s popularity in the dumps

Trudeau’s announcement of stepping down from power comes as no surprise. He’s been battling dipping popularity numbers and calls from within the Liberal Party to resign before the 2025 general elections. Many believe he should have quit earlier with Toronto resident Rob Gwett telling AFP, “He should have resigned over a year ago,” adding that the announcement was “better late than never”.

A look at the Trudeau Tracker from Canada’s non-profit Angus Reid Institute shows that his approval ratings are at the lowest. His ratings have dropped from 65 per cent at their highest in September 2016 to 22 per cent now.

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Similarly, a poll by market research and public opinion company Ipsos Canada released in December showed the Conservative Party and its leader, Pierre Poilievre , had 45 per cent of support among decided voters, compared with Trudeau’s 26 per cent.

Such has been the dislike against him that a survey last July had adjudged Trudeau as the worst prime minister in over half a century by a section of Canadian voters.

Canada sours on Trudeau

But what led to Canada turning on its poster boy, who emerged triumphant in 2015? There are many reasons for Ottawa’s disenchantment with the now outgoing PM ranging from his many controversies to his poor handling of the economy.

Controversies haunt Trudeau

In his years in power, Justin Trudeau has found himself embroiled in various controversies and scandals that have hurt his brand. The first such one occurred in December 2017 when Canada’s ethics commissioner ruled that he had broken conflict-of-interest rules by accepting a vacation, gifts and flights from the Aga Khan Foundation. It was the first time a prime minister had been found to have committed such a transgression.

He apologised for the incident, promising to check with the ethics commissioner before booking future holidays. “I’m sorry I didn’t, and in the future, I will be clearing all my family vacations with the commissioner.”

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His state visit to India in 2018 also became controversial when it ended up becoming a series of family photo-ops in traditional Indian clothing rather than being about diplomacy. During this visit, a major uproar also occurred when Khalistan separatist Jaspal Atwal , convicted of attempting to murder a Punjab minister, attended events hosted for Trudeau.

But that wasn’t it. In February 2019, Canada’s former Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould accused government officials of inappropriately pressuring her to help construction company SNC-Lavalin avoid a corruption trial. The affair prompted the resignation of Wilson-Raybould, and of Treasury Board President Jane Philpott. Losing two women from the Cabinet was politically damaging for a prime minister who had described himself as a feminist.

The worst scandal for Trudeau, perhaps, was the ‘Blackface’ incident of September 2019. His liberal credentials came under scrutiny when images appeared of a young Trudeau in ‘ blackface ’ emerged amid election campaigning. Trudeau said he “deeply regretted” his actions and “should have known better”.

In 2021, he was slammed by many for surfing during his vacation as Canada marked its first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The holiday was instituted to honour thousands of indigenous children who were forcefully assimilated into Canada’s state-backed residential school system.

And as recently as 2023, his government allowed for a Nazi to be applauded in Canada’s parliament.

Covid-19 and the trucker protests

When Covid-19 struck, Trudeau had to face off against the so-called Freedom Convoy, which was sparked by a mandate that required Canadian cross-border truckers to be vaccinated against Covid-19.

At the time, thousands of protesters clogged the streets of the capital of Ottawa and besieged Parliament Hill, demonstrating against the vaccine mandates and condemning Trudeau’s Liberal government.

To curb these protests, Trudeau invoked never-before-used emergency powers . Later in January 2024, a judge ruled that the government’s use of the Emergencies Act was unreasonable and unconstitutional.

Mismanagement of Canada’s economy

A rising number of people have also criticised Trudeau for his poor handling of Canada’s economy. One can’t forget his 2014 remark that the Canadian budget “will balance itself” and his 2021 comment to reporters, “you’ll forgive me if I don’t think about monetary policy”.

More than that, many slam his economic handling of the country after Covid-19. Today, Canada struggles with a housing crisis ; an average house cost $446,000 Canadian when Trudeau took over in 2015. That has escalated to $732,000 Canadian after peaking at $834,000 in March 2022. Prices rose for reasons including supply failing to keep up with the growing population, partly attributed to immigration.

Data also reveals that Canada has seen a stagnant economy, with higher government debt and higher inflation. Under Trudeau, the average inflation rate in Canada has been nearly twice as high as it was during his predecessor’s years. Figures show that between 2016 and 2024, the average inflation has consistently been at 2.7 per cent—far higher than the 1.69 per cent rise in consumer prices seen earlier.

In 2022, inflation surpassed the five per cent mark for the first time since 1991, touching 6.8 per cent during Trudeau’s tenure. In 2023, the Bank of Canada said that this was owing to three reasons — a spike in commodity prices, a surge in global demand for goods, and impaired supply chains.

His long-time ally, finance minister and deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland in her resignation in December questioned his economic policy. She charged that instead of preparing Canada’s finances to withstand the potentially crushing impact of 25 per cent import tariffs threatened by Donald Trump, Trudeau was focused on costly vote-buying gimmicks, like a Christmas tax holiday.

Trudeau’s diplomatic troubles

Many point out that Trudeau’s handling of international affairs has also led to many questioning the now outgoing PM.

For instance, Canada’s ties with India have deteriorated drastically under his tenure. He openly accused New Delhi of being responsible for the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar , a Sikh. India has categorically denied this claim and accused Trudeau of being soft on Khalistan terrorists who reside in Canada.

The accusations of Chinese election interference in the 2019 and 2021 elections also remain unsolved, with many questioning his intent.

With inputs from agencies