I’ve read a dozen opinion pieces by Quebec columnists over the past few months like this one from Lysianne Gagnon:

Is Justin Trudeau really the Liberals’ best option?

If the Toronto Liberal intelligentsia believe that Justin Trudeau, being a Trudeau and a Quebecker, can revive their party’s fortunes in Quebec, they are mightily wrong. (One might also wonder if anybody can save the Liberal Party of Canada now that the NDP occupies the centre-left, but this is another question.)

Justin’s surname is as much a liability in French-speaking Quebec as it is in Alberta. Personally, I find this hostility regrettable and irrational to boot, but the reality is that more than anybody else, Trudeau Senior remains the nemesis not only of the sovereigntists but of all of Quebec’s “soft” nationalists.

As I argued at the time, every shred of evidence we have before us suggests the Trudeau name is more of an asset than a liability – even in Quebec and Alberta. And here’s some more:

Sondage: Trudeau doublerait Mulcair au Québec

(Ottawa, Ontario) L’effet Trudeau se fait maintenant sentir au Québec. Le Parti libéral du Canada (PLC) prendrait la tête dans les intentions de vote dans la Belle Province s’il était dirigé par Justin Trudeau.

Un sondage CROP réalisé pour le compte de La Presse démontre que les électeurs québécois, à l’instar de bon nombre d’électeurs canadiens, sont loin d’être indifférents à l’entrée en scène de Justin Trudeau dans la course à la direction du PLC.

Avec le jeune député de Papineau comme chef, les libéraux obtiendraient 36% des intentions de vote au Québec, contre 30% au Nouveau Parti démocratique (NPD), 19% au Bloc québécois et un maigre 11% au Parti conservateur.

Now, I don’t think anyone should get caught up in these hypothetical polls, which come down to little more than superficial perceptions. Attitudes will quickly change once Canadians get to know Justin, attack ads air, and voters consider him as a Prime Minister rather than a celebrity. Right now, the polls don’t mean a lot, except that people like his hair…and his name.

Which, once again, shows how ridiculous it is to argue the Trudeau name is toxic. It’s clearly an asset, even in Quebec – regardless of what the “Quebec intelligentsia” claim.