Is Mark Carney’s ‘Canada Strong’ Brand Starting To Wane? Blame Brand Politics if So
Lead image by Westy72 / iStock
By Richard Nimijean
In March 2025, a month before Canada’s , Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre . Sure enough, Carney soon became a Liberal prime minister , implementing Conservative policies while reportedly .
The Carney government has borrowed another page from the Conservative playbook: the brand politics strategy of Stephen Harper’s government from 2006 to 2015.
link political party agendas to national identity through rhetorical, visual and symbolic means. They help create the impression that there’s little difference between the governing party, the state and Canadian identity.
Similar strategies
, I argued that Harper’s Conservatives wanted to remind Canadians that a non-Liberal regime was in power following more than a decade of Liberal rule.
Public servants to use in place of the “government of Canada.” A scientist was fired (and later reinstated) for .
Public servants were later told to use “Harper government,” reflecting the so-called .
Carney became prime minister almost 18 months ago, The phrase’s meaning has evolved from “not Liberal” in the Harper era to “not Trudeau Liberal” in the Carney era, as Carney cannot seem to fast enough.
This is reminiscent of to distinguish his brand from his Liberal predecessor Jean Chrétien’s.
From colours to slogans
Harper government websites featured a similar to the , minimizing Canada’s in the Federal Identity Program.
In 2008, the “True North Strong and Free” featured on both the and the cover of the . In 2014, advertising for upcoming Canada 150 celebrations to the Conservative platform.
“Canada Strong,” the centrepiece of , is prominent in his government’s communications. It was the title of the and is featured in a range of initiatives — from to the government’s — between party and state.
The Harper government’s “” stressed Canada’s ties to the British monarchy and Conservative support for the Crown. It promoted Canadian history and launched a campaign to promote awareness of the , including “” an expensive ad television comedy series.
Carney has also stressed these ties to promote Canadian sovereignty, to read the Speech from the Throne. The government continues to use British spelling in major documents like the 2026 Economic Update, a gesture despite .
The perils of brand politics
when its promise is not met, it no longer reflects its values or there is incoherence or a lack of clarity about what the brand represents.
For political brands, advertising and symbolism cannot overcome a loss of faith. A brand politics strategy could not salvage the Harper Conservatives’ fate in the 2015 federal election despite their efforts to replace the Liberals as Canada’s “natural governing party.”
Trudeau’s Liberals won because Conservative rhetoric and actions with Canadian attitudes about diversity, rights, the Syrian refugee crisis and their own efforts to reach out to new Canadians.
United States President Donald Trump’s latest 50 per cent tariff threats — — and that “without us, there’s no way [Canada] can survive,” have prompted .
The Liberal government could suffer the same fate as the Harper government if it fails to deliver on Carney’s “elbows up” promise that “.”
than assumed, and Canadians’ faith in Brand Carney is . as his room for reaching a deal satisfactory to both Trump and Canadians .
Meanwhile, some provinces have said they, and not the federal government, will decide when or whether they will .
Results matter
Brand incoherence could lead a drop in popularity. and his pledge that have already challenged his brand.
The label of buttressed by that Carney start showing results and not just make concessions, could undermine his 2025 insistence that
is central to . regularly remind Canadians that the world is perilous but his government can manage turbulence: “In a more dangerous and divided world, Canada’s new government is focused on what we can control: building a stronger, more independent, and more sustainable country.”
However, an emphasis on communication and symbolism in support of the brand can only go so far. Results matter, as seen in American filmmaker Rachel Boynton’s documentary on Bolivia’s 2002 presidential election, .
American campaign consultants for Gonzalo “Goni” Sánchez de Lozada developed a winning strategy emphasizing Goni as the candidate who could meet economic crises head-on. Protests soon followed after Goni failed to deliver the results voters expected, and he resigned.
, “The only thing about Goni that the consultants thought they could sell — at least the major thing — was his ability to handle the economy in a moment of crisis. Hence the title of the film.”
There is an important lesson here for Carney, who will be judged not by his brand strategy but by his actions. While there are many differences between Bolivia and Canada, the political consequences of not living up to a brand promise are universal.
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Richard Nimijean is an associate professor in the School of Canadian Studies at ÐÓ°ÉÔ´´ University.
This article is  from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. All photos provided by  from various from various sources.
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