The Star on the trail: reports from the three major campaigns with days left in a tight race

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/09/2021 (1500 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If there’s one thing all party leaders can agree on, it’s this: the 2021 federal election campaign has been nasty, brutish and short.

Marked by the rise of a fourth pandemic wave among the unvaccinated, the surprise fall of the Afghan government, anti-vaxxer protests, and partisan attacks slung across the airwaves, the final days of this race show Canadians deeply split.

Polls have Liberals and Conservatives deadlocked in popular support, but the Liberals ahead in projected seat counts, and the NDP likely to become kingmaker in another minority Parliament.

The Star looks at the challenge for each party and the mood on the leaders’ tours heading into the crucial final weekend before election day.

Alex Boutilier, Stephanie Levitz and Robert Benzie look at a Conservative party some insiders say is preparing to lose.

Alex Ballingall reports from the NDP bus on the “core dichotomy” of Jagmeet Singh’s campaign: “a positive posture alongside a sharp critique of the Liberals that veers into an attack on Trudeau’s very integrity.”

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

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And I write on the challenges Justin Trudeau anticipated in this campaign — and those he didn’t.

Tonda MacCharles is an Ottawa-based reporter covering federal politics for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @tondamacc