Justine Trudeau is projected to form a government after closely-fought election in Canada.
The prime minister was predicted to face a tight race after his campaign was rocked by two major scandals and a spirited challenge by the Conservatives.
But, according to CBC TV, Canada is set for a Liberal government although it is not clear at this stage if it will be minority or a majority.
Trudeau, who took power as a charismatic figure promising “sunny ways,” is battling Conservative leader Andrew Scheer for the chance to form the next government.
The 47-year-old Liberal Party leader, was endorsed by former U.S. President Barack Obama in the final stretch of the campaign.
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(Image: Getty Images)
He is viewed as one of the last remaining progressive leaders among the world’s major democracies.
But he was shaken during the campaign by a blackface scandal and has been dogged by criticism of his handling of a corruption case involving a major Canadian construction company.
Trudeau, the son of the late Liberal Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, has
also had to overcome a sense of fatigue with his government.
The leader, accompanied by his family, voted in Montreal on Monday after a marathon sprint campaigning across the country in the past four days.
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Ipsos pollster Darrell Bricker said the race for the leadership is so tight it was a “coin toss”.
A year ago, no one would have predicted that Trudeau risked becoming the first prime minister since the 1930s to secure a parliamentary majority and then fail to win a second term.
The latest opinion polls suggest he may narrowly avert that result and could win a minority in the 338-seat House of Commons.
