The Guardian view on Canada’s elections: is the Stephen Harper era over?| Editorial | Comment is free | The Guardian

The Guardian view on Canada’s elections: is the Stephen Harper era over?| Editorial | Comment is free | The Guardian:

It is the second biggest country in the world, yet sometimes it seems almost invisible. Often ignored by its powerful neighbour, regarded with only distant affection by the two European countries from which its settlers came, and taken for granted by many nations who should be more grateful than they are for its help and mediation in the past, Canada ploughs a lonely furrow. Now it is heading toward an election that will determine whether it will continue along the predictable rightward course set by Stephen Harper as prime minister over the past decade or whether it can recover some of the verve and originality that once marked its politics, not least under Pierre Trudeau, whose son Justin is one of the contenders.