Day 6

Can Justin Trudeau survive his blackface photos?

The Liberal Party of Canada is in damage control mode after photos and a video of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in blackface surfaced this week. Jeet Heer and Angela Wright weigh in on whether the prime minister will survive the fallout.

'I don't think the votes will change so much,' says Jeet Heer

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau addresses media in Winnipeg on Thursday following the publication of Trudeau in blackface. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)

The Liberal Party of Canada is doing damage control after photos and a video of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in blackface surfaced this week.

The Liberal Party has so far stood by its leader. Jeet Heer, a national affairs correspondent for the Nation magazine, says it's unlikely that this week's bombshell images will affect votes either.

"You vote for parties for a bunch of reasons," he said.

"I always remember ... Rob Ford. [There were] credible allegations that he smoked crack and I knew a lot of people [who] stuck with him. So I feel like if you're if you're with somebody, people tend to stay with it." 

Angela Wright, a political analyst and former Conservative political staffer, says Liberals will see some damage at the polls.

"I would be very surprised if this didn't hurt them in some way; in the same way that the Conservatives were harmed in 2011 when they ...  doubled down on the niqab ban and on the Barbaric Cultural Practices Act." 

To hear more from Jeet Heer and Angela Wright, download our podcast or click Listen above.