In a King St. E. campaign office packed with enthusiastic Liberals, love — or at least mutual admiration — was in the air.

There was a beaming Premier Kathleen Wynne extolling her federal Liberal counterpart’s “positive” vision for the nation and basking in the glow of his celebrity.

“Cooperation and collaboration . . . we need that in Ottawa. This is the way Justin Trudeau is going to govern this country,” Wynne told the cheering throng at last Saturday’s final push for the Toronto Centre byelection campaign.

There was Trudeau, energized by the ecstatic crowd of 300 partisans, describing Wynne as “an extraordinary leader,” who shares his hopes and dreams for a better, stronger Canada.

The two leaders, accompanied by retired Toronto Centre MP Bob Rae, then hit the hustings for Liberal candidate Chrystia Freeland, meeting voters for 90 minutes in bustling St. Lawrence Market nearby.

Their work paid off — Freeland won Monday’s byelection, besting high-profile New Democrat Linda McQuaig and trouncing Conservative Geoff Pollock.

The results in Toronto Centre underscored that Trudeau has longer coattails in Ontario than his fellow Quebecer, federal NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair.

And that means the charismatic eldest son of late prime minister Pierre Trudeau could be a factor in a provincial election expected as early as next spring.

“Make no mistake, (it) was a great night for Liberals and not a good night for New Democrats and not a good night for Conservatives,” Health Minister Deb Matthews, co-chair of the provincial Liberal campaign, said the morning after the vote.

Asked if it will be helpful for the decade-old Ontario Liberal government to have the fresh-faced federal leader with the famous surname on the stump for Wynne in 2014, Matthews smiled: “Absolutely.”

“We’re all Liberals and we help each other out. Provincial Liberals were very much there in Toronto Centre. The premier was there. We have a very good relationship with the federal party,” she said.

“We work together. I welcome the help of all Liberals, including Justin Trudeau.”

Liberal strategist Marcel Wieder said because Wynne’s “biggest challenge” will likely come from NDP Leader Andrea Horwath instead of Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak, Trudeaumania is good news for provincial Grits.

“In looking at all three federal leaders and how they play in Ontario, it is hard to imagine that Tim Hudak would want any help from Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who is dogged by several scandals not least of which involves the Senate,” said Wieder, president of Aurora Strategy Group.

“On the other side Tom Muclair is not resonating with Ontarians — unlike his predecessor Jack Layton, who felt the love in the last election. Horwath was a major beneficiary of Layton’s popularity,” he said in reference to the NDP leader who died in 2011.

Wieder noted Trudeau’s “star power” played a part in Nova Scotia Liberal Premier Stephen McNeil’s election victory last month.

Indeed, McNeil included an image of the popular federal leader in his first TV commercial and the two men campaigned together so much that the Huffington Post joked about their “bromance.”

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Here in Ontario, voters should expect to see a lot of Trudeau and Wynne on the campaign trail.

“The youthful energy in Trudeau and Wynne’s experience governing the most populous province is a match made in heaven. The combination appeals to key Liberal constituencies of urban (voters), women, youth and seniors,” said Wieder.

Rae, Ontario’s NDP premier from 1990 to 1995, predicted Trudeau will be a boost to Wynne just as she was to him in the byelection.

“Justin is a huge positive factor. He’s very popular, he’s very engaging. People like him. I think both Kathleen and Justin are natural campaigners,” said the former interim federal Liberal leader.

“They get along very well together. I think they’re going to do very well.”

Freeland, for her part, agreed there is a shared respect among federal and provincial Grits for their leaders and emphasized that “campaigning with Kathleen on Saturday was absolutely tremendous.”

“The fact that Kathleen came out and campaigned for us is a sign that we see her huge, huge asset and I’m really grateful for her support,” said the incoming Toronto Centre MP.

But one provincial Liberal insider, speaking on condition of anonymity to speak candidly about party strategy, warned the public’s infatuation with any politician can have a shelf life.

“Remember, (Mayor Rob) Ford helped Harper, but literally four months later, he helped kill Hudak,” said the Grit, referring to the 2011 federal and provincial election results in Toronto.

“So timing is everything. Right now, Justin is a big help to Kathleen, but in a few months, who knows?”

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