The Timesâs recent Canada-related coverage with back stories and analysis from our reporters along with opinions from our readers.
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[The New York Times](
[The New York Times](
Saturday, January 5, 2019
[NYTimes.com/Canada »](
[Can Justin Trudeau Make It Two in a Row?](
By IAN AUSTEN
A new year means that, like all of The Timesâs correspondents scattered around our 31 international bureaus, Iâm thinking about stories and projects to cover in 2019. My list has an obvious and overriding theme: Canadaâs federal election, scheduled for Oct. 21.
[In 2015, some polls suggested that Tom Mulcair was about to become prime minister.]
In 2015, some polls suggested that Tom Mulcair was about to become prime minister.
Ian Willms for The New York Times
Looking back at the last one, I was quickly reminded of the perils of predictions when it comes to votes in Canada. At this time in 2015, few experts, if any, were predicting that Justin Trudeau would emerge as prime minister, let alone that his Liberals would hold a majority government. Indeed, by early summer that year, polling stories widely forecast that the New Democrats under Tom Mulcair would take power.
In the end, of course, the New Democrats crashed. Mr. Mulcair has since left politics and his successor, [Jagmeet Singh,]( is campaigning to win a seat in Parliament in a by-election likely to be held in February.
[Jagmeet Singh, the New Democratsâ leader, shown in the pink turban, is campaigning for a House of Commons seat.]
Jagmeet Singh, the New Democratsâ leader, shown in the pink turban, is campaigning for a House of Commons seat.
Cole Burston for The New York Times
Mr. Trudeauâs unexpected rise to power is thought to have come from last-minute swings in voter preferences, rather than problems with polling, although there were certainly some of those.
When I spoke this week with Frank Graves, the president of the polling firm EKOS Research, he certainly wasnât inclined to make any specific predictions for October.
âAnyone who knows whatâs going to happen in 2019 is much smarter than I am,â Mr. Graves said. âItâs going to be a brawl. It isnât going to be pretty.â
With the usual warning that the current situation may not apply by the fall, hereâs a quick overview of the state of play for the three main parties:
[Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, shown in November, was not seen as a likely winner at the start of the 2015 campaign.]
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, shown in November, was not seen as a likely winner at the start of the 2015 campaign.
Jeff Mcintosh/The Canadian Press, via Associated Press
⢠Leadership: Only Mr. Trudeau and Elizabeth May of the Green Party will be repeat performers from 2015 as party leaders. Several polls suggest that many voters still donât know much about Andrew Scheer, the former speaker of the House of Commons who now leads the Conservatives.
Mr. Singh, a former Ontario provincial politician, also needs to define himself for a national audience. The wild card is Maxime Bernier, the libertarian former cabinet minister who has left the Conservatives to create the Peopleâs Party of Canada.
⢠Money: Unlike in American elections, Canadaâs laws make votes here comparatively low-budget affairs. But donations are still the fuel of campaigns. The last fund-raising reports from the parties show that the Conservative machine remains well oiled, pulling in 4.8 million Canadian dollars in the quarter ending in September. The Liberals raised 3.8 million dollars. Both of those results are relatively consistent with the recent past. But the New Democrats have fallen hard, with well under one million dollars over the same time period.
⢠Issues: Forecasting key election issues, like results, can be fraught. But unlike in 2015, Mr. Trudeau is unlikely to wander around the country making promise after promise. Many of his earlier vows [remain unfulfilled]( or works in progress, and a handful were abandoned, notably a promise to reform how we elect members of Parliament. But he can point to a number of achievements, including middle-income tax cuts and the legalization of [medically assisted deaths]( and [recreational marijuana](. And while Mr. Trudeauâs attempts to develop a relationship with President Trump [came to a bitter end,]( a new Nafta was nevertheless struck.
[Andrew Scheer, who leads the Conservatives, has made carbon taxes one of his main issues.]
Andrew Scheer, who leads the Conservatives, has made carbon taxes one of his main issues.
Chris Wattie/Reuters
Mr. Scheer, along with the leaders of four Canadian provinces, is already campaigning against Mr. Trudeauâs plan to [impose carbon taxes]( on provinces that wonât do it by themselves. His alternative program for reducing carbon emissions has still to be unveiled.
Mr. Graves said that his polling found that core Conservative supporters want to see tighter immigration limits and are particularly upset by [asylum seekers crossing the border]( on foot from the United States. Mr. Bernierâs platform is clearly playing to that concern, while the Conservative appeal to anti-immigration voters has been less explicit.
As in the United States, one thing has become clear to Mr. Graves in his polling: âOn many major issues, there is very little common ground.â If that trend continues, you can count on similarly polarized campaigns in Canada this year.
Trans Canada
[âBirth Tourismâ Is Legal in Canada. A Lawmaker Calls It Unscrupulous.](
In British Columbia, a growing industry caters to pregnant women, mainly from China, who come to Canada to give birth so that their children will become Canadian citizens. While in Vancouver, my colleague Dan Bilefsky found a rising backlash against âbirth tourism.â
[Leonard Cohenâs Posthumous Collection of Poems, Lyrics and Sketches](
The critic William Logan found that a newly released collection of Leonard Cohenâs poems, notebooks, lyrics and drawings âhas a little of everything for Cohen fans and nothing for anyone else.â
[Why Was the Woman Having Trouble Seeing, if Her Eyes Were Fine?](
A middle-aged woman in Toronto suddenly developed blurry vision. Some doctors thought it was age-related. Others suggested that it was tied to stress. A neurologist finally linked it to a rare condition that has puzzled physicians for centuries.
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Around The Times
[1 Woman, 12 Months, 52 Places](
After traveling to 52 places, including Saskatoon, in just a year, Jada Yuan is finally unpacking her bags.
[In High-Tech Cities, No More Potholes, but What About Privacy?](
Toronto is not the only place where people are leery about smart cities technology.
[Bob Einstein, 76, a.k.a. Super Dave Osborne and Larry David Pal, Dies](
Bob Einstein, the comedian who recorded his adventures in the role of the hapless daredevil Super Dave Osborne in Canada, died this week.
[What Does Winning an Olympic Gold Medal in Curling Do? Crazy Things](
After almost a year, and unexpectedly, the victory tour continues for the curling team that defeated Canada and Sweden to become the first American squad with an Olympic gold medal.
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