An election about hair, swearing and dragon slaying
25 August 2015
Mention the words hair, election and scandal to anyone and they might (wrongly) assume you were talking about business mogul Donald Trump and his US presidential bid. But the #hairgate scandal that unravelled at the weekend in fact centres around a famous novelist, the Canadian prime minister and his well-groomed Liberal opponent. It's one of several episodes in an eventful election campaign - with voting still two months away. Writer Margaret Atwood thrust the upcoming Canadian parliamentary elections into the international media spotlight after a satirical article she wrote about Prime Minister Stephen Harper's hair (yes, hair) appeared on the National Post website, then disappeared after several hours. It reappeared again with several lines missing, prompting the novelist to ask, "Um, did I just get censored?" The novelist tweeted about the mysterious disappearance of her article hours after it was first published on Friday, and soon #hairgate started to trend on Twitter. People mocked the amount of coverage it was getting, likening it to the media attention Donald Trump has been awarded in recent weeks. ...even Margaret Atwood found time to joke about it... A senior National Post vice-president later told The Star the article was taken down because fact-checking had not been completed and questions remained over whether it was "aligned with the values of the National Post and its readers". How did the flowing locks of politicians become an election issue anyway? It began in May - three months before the polls were even announced - when the Conservatives released a new video ad dubbed "The Interview" mocking the coiffure of Justin Trudeau, leader of Canada's Liberal Party. Four people sit in a conference room mulling over CVs of candidates for a job interview (presumably the post of prime minister), "lets talk about Justin," one man says. "I see he's enclosed his picture," a woman on the panel responds. They go on to question Mr Trudeau's credentials and attack his policies for being too lightweight, finally concluding he's "just not ready". The video ends with one panellist quipping, "nice hair though". Mr Trudeau's hairstyles have long been a subject of interest in the Canadian media, with thousands of words dedicated to his thick wavy locks. "It's a tangential way of saying he's not serious enough, that it's all about his looks and his personality and there's not enough substance to his policies. He's a celebrity not a politician or a leader, that's what they are trying to get say," CBC News politics producer Chris Carter tells the BBC. In 2013, the Liberal leader decided to ditch the tousled and unkempt look for a shorter, cleaner cut, which observers in Canada interpreted as a bid for him to win the Liberal leadership contest (which he did). Stephen Harper's hairstyle has also been under scrutiny, with comedians noting with glee how it has "remained unchangeable and quite consistent", says Mr Carter. The article by Mrs Atwood that caused such a stir included the suggestion that it was Mr Harper with the hair problem and not his Liberal opponent. One of Stephen Harper's supporters hit the headlines last week when he verbally abused a group of journalists questioning the prime minister's knowledge about an ongoing expenses scandal that dates back to 2012. CBC reporter Hannah Thibedeau was confronted by an unnamed man who, using explicit language, told her she - and the rest of the media - was a "lying piece of ..." after she grilled him about the Mike Duffy case, a senator facing charges of bribery and fraud. The self-professed Conservative supporter went on to accuse the group of journalists of lying on their tax returns, saying it amounted to the same thing as the Duffy scandal. A Conservative spokesman later apologised, saying the man's behaviour was unacceptable, the channel reported. In what is probably a first for any election campaign, Canada has introduced the world to its (maybe) first dragon-slaying and alien-busting politician. Meet Wyatt Scott, an independent candidate standing in a district near Vancouver whose promotional video showcasing his extraordinary skills has received more than 1.2m views on YouTube. In it, Mr Scott can be seen flying a giant goose, landing on a dragon and laser-eyeballing what appears to be giant robot. It's not the only election campaign video to cause a ripple. In April, comedian Scott Vrooman published a satirical video calling the Senate a "gilded chamber filled with corruption and sleazy back-scratching". He claims to be standing for the upper house despite seats there being appointed not elected. Meanwhile, Darth Vader has entered the race. That's according to a campaign sign that appeared on a lawn in the town of Penetanguishene, Ontario, a week ago. A picture of the "campaign sign",  whose slogan reads "Darth Vader. Together we can rule the galaxy", quickly went viral on social media, prompting some Canadians to ask where they could purchase one. It turns out a man called Nic Gorissen created the signs after becoming frustrated by different parties pestering him to vote for them, the CTV Barrie news site reports. But it's not the first time the dark lord of Star Wars has appeared in election campaigns. Some 16 men named Darth Vader registered to vote in Ukraine's parliamentary polls last year. And finally, as if that wasn't enough excitement with just 55 days to go before the polls, there are rumours that the brother of Toronto's controversial former mayor, Rob Ford, may throw his hat into the ring for Conservative leadership if Stephen Harper fails in the election. "Doug said if it's a minority government, Harper's going to step down. He wants to run for leadership," Rob Ford said of his brother, Doug, in an interview with Bloomberg news three days ago. The comments drew a strong response from the Twittersphere, with some comparing Ford's possible bid for Canadian prime minister to Donald Trump's US presidential campaign.
And finally, as if that wasn't enough excitement with just 55 days to go before the polls, there are rumours that the brother of Toronto's controversial former mayor, Rob Ford, may throw his hat into the ring for Conservative leadership if Stephen Harper fails in the election. "Doug said if it's a minority government, Harper's going to step down. He wants to run for leadership," Rob Ford said of his brother, Doug, in an interview with Bloomberg news three days ago. The comments drew a strong response from the Twittersphere, with some comparing Ford's possible bid for Canadian prime minister to Donald Trump's US presidential campaign.
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The return of (a) Ford?