The Trudeau trend

Political exits are usually ignominious when politicians don’t quit in time. The Canadian PM follows that pattern

Justin Trudeau’s decision to step down as Canada’s PM follows an old political pattern. Across the world, high-profile political exits are often crash-and-burn rather than fond farewells. Trudeau, once the poster boy of liberal democracy and progressive positions on climate change and women’s rights, goes out with most Canadians – including those in his Liberal Party – feeling relieved. The consensus is that he held on for far too long. But high-profile politicians, cursed with immense self-belief, don’t know when to quit, backing themselves to turn things around even when that is impossible.

Thus, instead of leaving behind a shining legacy, they bring on a deluge of disappointments. It’s happened here in India. Both Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s and Manmohan Singh’s PM tenures witnessed an apogee before a calamitous slide. Vajpayee govt’s ‘India Shining’ campaign totally misread public mood while Singh’s inability to manage coalition politics in UPA 2 saw him being caricatured as ‘Maun-mohan’ Singh. Similarly, in Malaysia Mahathir Mohamad was credited with transforming Malaysian economy in the 1980s-90s. But his 22-year-long first tenure as PM painted him as an autocrat who would go to any lengths to remain in office. Further back, Churchill lost UK’s first post-war election despite leading the country through World War II.

Failure to read the exit signs can also lead to tragic consequences. In Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina oversaw the country’s impressive economic growth over a decade. She could have made that her legacy and stepped aside. Instead, she chose to treat the country’s leadership as her personal fiefdom and paid a heavy price. Back to Trudeau, he checked all the boxes of a charismatic leader – suave, the right political pedigree, and modern rhetoric. He also previously hit the right notes on immigration. But by failing to read the room, he plotted his own downfall. Yet another inglorious political exit.

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