Who is Pierre Poilievre, the Conservative leader on track to become Canada's Next Prime Minister?

Pierre Poilievre, the favorite to become Canada's next leader, has painted his country as “broken” and full of “crime and chaos.” He scorned Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as a “wacko” and his ministers as “crazy,” “disastrous,” “incompetent and disrespectful.”

In Parliament, he called the leader of the opposition and a former supporter of Trudeau a “fake, a fake and a fraud” and a “trader.” Exasperated, the leader got up from his seat, walked into the corridor, and shouted, “I'm here bro.”

“Do it,” mr. Poilievre responded as the House speaker struggled to regain his composure and urged lawmakers to respect “the laws we have.”

Mr. Poilievre, 45, leader of the opposition Conservative Party, has been stretching the rules of Canadian political discourse with a combative, attack-driven style and an anti-populist message, described as authentic by supporters and Trumpian by critics.

So far, it has worked.

Last year, Mr. Poilievre and his party enjoyed a double-digit lead in the polls over Mr Trudeau and his Liberal party. If the election continues, Mr. Poilievre will stand down as prime minister in a national election due in October but likely to be held in the spring after Mr Trudeau announced on Monday that he would step down as party leader and prime minister. the minister when his party has decided who will take office.

A longtime politician known as his party's attack dog, with a natural sense of issues that resonate with voters, Mr. Poilievre successfully beat the unpopular Mr Trudeau last year and made him appear unpopular.

Mr. Poilievre has driven the country's political agenda by choosing issues – housing costs, inflation and immigration – that, according to many Canadians, Mr. Trudeau's government has underestimated or mishandled.

But in a press conference announcing his resignation, Mr. Trudeau said “the idea of ​​Mr. Poilievre for this country is not what Canadians deserve,” adding that the opposition leader did not offer “an ambitious and optimistic vision for the future.”

That Mr. Whether Poilievre can hold on to his lead in the polls, or build on it, now that voters know him better is unclear. In the coming months, the Liberal Party's choice of a successor could represent a bump in the party's popularity. And Mr. Poilievre, who became leader of the Conservatives in 2022, will have to campaign on his plan to win over ordinary voters.

“He would be very different from any other prime minister we've had,” said Duane Bratt, a political scientist at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta. “He's been fighting a lot, and has been all his life. That is good as the leader of the opposition, and as a junior minister. But can he do that as prime minister?”

Like other nationalist leaders, Mr. Poilievre tapped into post-pandemic voter frustration over rising living costs, unaffordable housing and what was seen by many as the Trudeau government making big decisions — like record immigration or carbon emissions. tax — without much explanation or consultation.

Three years ago, Mr. Poilievre was one of the few politicians who openly supported the truck drivers who paralyzed the center of Ottawa, the capital, for weeks in protest of the vaccination mandate.

“You have anti-elitism in Canada,” said Lori Turnbull, a political scientist at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Mr. Poilievre has pushed a general message of personal freedom, small government, low taxes, being tough on crime and easing regulations on Canada's oil industry.

But he laced his message with insults against the “Davos elite,” threatening to sack Canada's central bank, embrace cryptocurrency and attack the mainstream media, especially the public broadcaster, the CBC, which he vowed to reverse.

“The problem that we have had in this country and in all the countries that have been affected by this horrible creature is that we are focusing more on the beauty, the splendor of the leadership of people who value themselves at the top and not on the good and beautiful things about ordinary people,” said Mr. Poilievre in a recent interview with Jordan Peterson, Canadian psychologist and social media star.

Mr. Poilievre added: “And that's another reason why I think we're doing so well.” “People say, finally, someone is focused on letting me take control of my life.''

Elon Musk, a billionaire and one of President-elect Donald J. Trump's most influential supporters, said there was “a lot of discussion” about Mr. Trump's appearance. Poilievre on Mr. Peterson. Mr. Musk was seen hugging Mr. Poilievre even as he continues to disparage Mr. Trudeau.

“Girl, you're not the ruler of Canada anymore, so it doesn't matter what you say,” said Mr. Musk took to social media after Mr Trudeau said there was “not a chance in hell” that Canada would join. of America, according to Mr.

In his private life, Mr. Poilievre couldn't be more different from Mr Trudeau, who – as the son of Pierre Trudeau, who led Canada for nearly 16 years and helped define Canada's modern identity – grew up in the prime minister's official residence. in Ottawa.

In an apparent attempt to emphasize his humble origins, Mr. Poilievre often tells the story of how he was born in Calgary to a 16-year-old mother and given up for adoption. His adoptive parents were school teachers who separated when he was 12, after which his father came out as gay.

When he was nominated as the leader of the Conservative Party at large in 2022, he greeted his biological mother, his adoptive parents and his father's old colleague, all in the audience.

“We are a complex and mixed group, like many families, like our country,” said Mr. Poilievre, who supports gay rights and abortion.

Mr. Poilievre has two young children with his wife, Anaida Galindo, a former Senate aide whom he met in Ottawa. Ms. Poilievre was born in Venezuela but grew up with her family in Montreal. Her husband often referred to the benefits of immigration by giving the example of Ms.'s family.

Involved in Calgary politics since his early teens, Mr. Poilievre became the youngest member of Parliament when he was elected in 2004 at the age of 25. He quickly rose through the ranks, impressing senior politicians with his hard work, intelligence and combativeness. , earned the nickname “Skippy.”

He tried to destroy the image created by the nickname by fixing it in the summer of 2023. Abandoning blue suits and ties, he began appearing in public in jeans and sometimes tight T-shirts. He popped off his square glasses to see his contacts and aviator glasses.

“He's changed his image from this goofy little guy with glasses and a scowl on his face all the time to this kind of Bitcoin bro who appeals to younger voters, male voters,” said Ms Turnbull, a political scientist.

Mr. Poilievre said in an interview with Mr. Peterson that he has become “stronger” since becoming leader of the Conservatives and is ready to become prime minister.

“On my own,” he said. “I don't come from a noble or rich background. I was taken in by teachers, and grew up in a normal suburb. We didn't always have money. But I managed to get here.”