Thunder Bay – POLITICS 2.0 ANALYSIS – As the federal election campaign intensifies and debates loom large, the early momentum behind Mark Carney’s Liberals is showing signs of wear. Voters are starting to ask a difficult question: Is anything really different—other than the name at the top?
While Carney entered the race with a glossy image—a global financial heavyweight, untainted by partisan politics, a calm contrast to the combative Pierre Poilievre—the reality of the Liberal team around him is now coming into sharper focus.
While some Conservatives are already reportedly harkening back to a past era of the Progressive Conservatives “eating their leaders”, the campaign team for Pierre Poilivre is seeing their poll numbers start to rebound. If the leadership debates and the Easter Long Weekend have Canadians making politics the table talk, the polls next week should tell volumes of information.
Voter Enthusiasm Dips as Familiar Liberal Faces Reappear
Carney’s promise of a “fresh start for Canada” is beginning to sound increasingly hollow for voters who recognize the faces lining up behind him. Many of the same senior ministers, staffers, and advisors who served under Justin Trudeau’s tenure are still present, steering policy, making promises, and defending a record that many Canadians view as deeply flawed.
From ballooning deficits and broken housing promises to ongoing frustrations over healthcare wait times and Indigenous infrastructure gaps, a growing segment of the electorate is asking: “If it’s the same team, how different will the outcome be?”
Carney’s “Fresh Start” Narrative Faces Skepticism
While Carney’s numbers still show strength—especially among centrist and urban voters—his net favourability has begun to dip. A recent Abacus poll shows his “Preferred Prime Minister” margin has shrunk from nine points to six in just a week. That may be early evidence of the “gloss wearing off” effect.
Some voters say Carney’s polished presentation masks a lack of distance from Trudeau-era policies, particularly on housing, affordability, and energy. If Poilievre has successfully painted him as “Trudeau 2.0,” even mildly, it could cause Carney’s brand to plateau—or worse, unravel.
Is It Just a Trudeau Government With a New Suit?
This is the question now surfacing across coffee shops, comment threads, and even doorsteps in places like Thunder Bay–Rainy River and Thunder Bay–Superior North. In communities where cost-of-living pressures, healthcare gaps, and infrastructure delays have become lived realities, the idea of continuity is not comforting—it’s a warning.
For Indigenous communities, the message of “reconciliation” has been heard before—and often not backed with timely or tangible results. For young families struggling to find housing, the same ministers promising new strategies were once responsible for overseeing the old ones.
And Carney’s central pitch—his financial expertise—has yet to convince skeptical voters that he can deliver on practical change in the face of entrenched federal bureaucracy.
What Thunder Bay Voters Are Starting to Ask
Locally, the question of credibility is growing. Residents are asking whether the Liberal plan for the North under Carney is materially different from what came before, or if it’s just a fresh coat of paint on a party that’s already had nine years in government.
In a region that often feels ignored until election season, the appeal of real change—not rhetorical change—carries weight. And for all his credentials, Carney has yet to outline how his leadership will depart meaningfully from Trudeau’s.
The Bottom Line:
As voter focus sharpens heading into the debates, the burden is now on Mark Carney to prove that he offers more than a new face on an old brand.
Because if the perception hardens that this is just Trudeau without the socks, it won’t take long for the gloss to fully fade—and for Poilievre to seize the momentum he’s been waiting for.
