NATIONAL PULSE – Canadians weigh in on Trudeau’s ‘charismatic’ brand

While they have mixed feelings about Trudeau’s celebrity, most Canadians say it’s good for the country

October 19, 2017 – Justin Trudeau’s public persona – the selfie-taking, magazine-cover-gracing, colourful-sock-wearing, global celebrity Prime Minister – has been an integral part of his Liberal Party’s first two years in government. As much as any policy, Brand Trudeau is what comes to mind when thinking about Canada’s government these days.

So, what do Canadians think of their PM’s fame?

The second installment of the Angus Reid Institute’s two-year review of the Trudeau government finds respondents divided in their personal opinions on Trudeau the celebrity – roughly one-third like it, one-third dislike it, and one-third profess to be “neutral.” Asked whether Trudeau’s celebrity is good or bad for Canada, however, a full majority (54%) say it’s a net positive for the country, compared to fewer than one-in-five (19%) who say it’s a bad thing.

This positivity coexists with some more negative views of the Trudeau Liberals’ image-conscious government. Three times as many Canadians say the government has been “putting too much emphasis on ‘PR’ and photo-ops” in its first two years than say it has been “making real progress and getting things done” (44% versus 13%, respectively).

More Key Findings:

• Canadians are most likely to describe Justin Trudeau as “Charismatic” (50%), “Modern” (43%) and “Compassionate” (31%), but at least one-fifth also describe him as “Arrogant” (26%), “Flaky” (23%), and “Weak” (22%)

• The number of Canadians saying the government is making real progress has decreased by 12 percentage points since the Angus Reid Institute asked last year, and the number saying it is putting too much emphasis on scoring style points has risen by 8 points

• Views on the Trudeau brand are highly correlated with views on the Trudeau government. Those who approve of the government’s performance at mid-term are also much more favourable toward the PM’s celebrity

Link to the poll here: www.angusreid.org/trudeau-brand