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I believe it was a theory in the early days of Jagmeet Singh’s rise to the top of the NDP (a hillock, not a mountain) that he was just the man to take on Justin Trudeau, on Mr. Trudeau’s own turf. The word “natty” occurred a lot in those assessments, there being a whole harvest of articles about Mr. Singh’s fastidious personal style. No less an oracle than BuzzFeed — Debrett’s for Valley girls — declared him the “most stylish politician in Canada by like a million kilometres” (a whole lot).

The American magazine GQ danced in rhapsody over this “incredibly well-dressed rising star” and “his custom-designed suits which look sharp as hell” (a very hot place). There was much, much more of the same during the actual leadership race, with many reflections on his colourful turbans (“lime, bright orange, pink”) as an added signature of his nattiness, and on his ability and desire to “stand out” from the grey-suited, down-at-heel fellow travellers in the genetically unstylish world of vote hustlers.

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Photo by Justin Tang/CP

Trudeau, no slacker in the elegant drapery department himself, was about to meet his bespoke match. If the fashion press had anything to say about it, and it incontinently would, the next federal election at the leadership level would have little to separate it from a peacock mating ritual (a vivid, florid, aggressive display of puffed-up plumage).