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This was back in March, when the idea of a Trump presidency seemed impossible. Laughable, even.

Needless to say, the political mood has sobered. I can’t help but wonder whether Quebec’s political leaders would be so quick to dismiss Le Pen if she showed up at the doorstep today.

The world is undergoing a dramatic political realignment. This is particularly evident across the United States and Europe. In Germany, for example, we are seeing the rapid ascent of the populist right-wing, anti-immigrant party Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in part due to what some perceive as an inadequate government and media response to the migrant crisis rocking Europe. However, it is two major recent political upsets — Trump’s victory in the United States this month and the Brexit win in the United Kingdom in June — that have some wondering whether a similar kind of populist wave could gain traction in Canada. (Conservative leadership candidate Kellie Leitch, currently taking a page out of Trump’s “anti-elite” playbook, seems to think so.)