At an April rally in Scarborough, a woman in the crowd yelled “Lead us, big daddy” at the Liberal leader. It’s an anecdote that threatens to overstate the enthusiasm behind Carney—we aren’t talking Carneymania, a surge in affection of the sort Pierre Elliott Trudeau enjoyed in 1968—but it captures a conception of the leader as a parental figure that a subset of voters were looking for. These voters wanted to be, needed to be, led during a time of uncertainty and chaos.

In surveys, the Liberals performed worse on the affordability and desire for change ballot questions than they did on Trump. This makes sense given that after nearly a decade in power, the party itself, whoever the leader might be, was going to wear a variety of shortcomings and grievances. It didn’t matter. Enough voters were worried about Trump—and the Conservatives winning—to neutralize Tory numbers that were historically strong.

For more on Carney and the Liberals, read

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