Canada's answer to Donald Trump is a pediatric surgeon and former Cabinet minister who, like the U.S. president-elect, is railing against immigration and political elites.
Kellie Leitch, 46, has vaulted to the front of the race to lead the opposition Conservative Party by pushing a hard-right "Canadian values" platform that taps into discontent over the sluggish economy and Canada's acceptance of 37,000 Syrian refugees.
Leitch is ahead of about a dozen candidates in the most recent opinion polls on the party leadership election, scheduled to be held May 27. The candidate chosen by party members will be their flag bearer for the October 2019 general election, against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberals.