Liberal MP Justin Trudeau has told Montreal's La Presse that he will run for the leadership of the federal Liberal …He's taking the plunge.
Sources for La Presse are reporting that Justin Trudeau will be seeking the leadership of the Federal Liberals. According to the French-language Montreal newspaper, Trudeau will make the official announcement in his home riding of Papineau on Tuesday.
While many in the media are already crowning Justin as the King of the Liberals, political analyst Warren Kinsella says that's not what is best for the party.
"He would be the front-runner," Kinsella told Yahoo! Canada News in an email exchange.
"But a lot of us Liberals don't want or need a coronation. We need a competitive race with lots of great, viable candidates and ideas. Justin needs that, too."
Kinsella, who was a Jean Chretien staffer, adds that Trudeau has the sizzle but needs the steak.
"He needs to talk about ideas and policies. He has the charisma thing nailed. Now he needs to tell us what he thinks."
[ Related: Justin Trudeau to announce run for Liberal leadership ]
Former Liberal MP Dan McTeague, who was in caucus with Trudeau, believes that Trudeau won't have any trouble showing Canadians his 'steak.'
"He's smart, young and intelligent and will have time to hone the skills to start his bid for PM. Liberal supporters who sat out the last election or drifted to the NDP in the last election will now have a serious rethink," McTeague, who now now operates Tomorrowsgaspricetoday.com told Yahoo!.
"The future is bright for the Liberal Party, but it will take work and a fresh approach to re-engage Canadians, especially the new generation, where Justin has a considerable advantage."
Not everyone, however, believes in Trudeau's abilities.
Jim Ross, who was a senior Conservative government staffer on the immigration committee when Trudeau was the Liberal immigration critic, told Yahoo! Canada News that the son of Pierre is unimpressive.
"He's a lightweight who didn't know his stuff," Ross said.
"He was the least knowledgeable of any of the opposition critics who I dealt with."
[ Photos: Justin Trudeau through the years ]
We also spoke to Abacus Data pollster David Coletto who says Canadians aren't necessarily looking for a professor to be prime minister.
"I think it is a misconception to say that Canadians are looking for a leader who has deep policy knowledge. They want someone who they can trust, who is authentic, and who shares their values," he said.
"Michael Ignatieff and Stephane Dion were likely the most academically accomplished Canadian political leaders in a generation and they were unable to connect with Canadians. The world of Twitter, Facebook and 30 second sound bites is not conducive to a deep thinker who cannot explain his or her positions in less than 140 characters. "
And what does his research predict will happen if Trudeau wins the leadership?
"We asked Canadians how they would vote if Trudeau was Liberal leader. Under a Trudeau leader scenario, the Liberals were statistically tied with the Conservatives and he would have taken 25 per cent of the NDP's vote," Coletto told Yahoo! in an email.
"Trudeau would throw a wrench into the NDP's plans to consolidate the anti-Conservative vote while giving the Conservatives and the BQ some breathing room due to vote splitting in Ontario and Quebec."
Whether he's just another pretty face or not, thanks to Trudeau, Canada's political landscape has just become a lot more interesting.
[ Related: Is the Stephen Harper 'brand' broken? ]
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