Canadian politics are getting fiery.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the young scion of a Liberal family who swept the global political scene off its feet a decade ago, is now a 52-year-old leader with approval ratings worse than President Biden’s.

He is rapidly losing ground to the Conservative Party’s leader, Pierre Poilievre, who, despite having vague policy plans, has deployed punchy sloganeering that has kept Mr. Trudeau on the ropes.

On Wednesday, the Liberal Party is set to face a vote of no confidence in Parliament. While the vote is expected to fail, it is a sign of deepening trouble as the party — like Mr. Trudeau — teeters months away from a general election.

After years of high inflation, soaring housing costs and an overstretched public health system, Mr. Trudeau faces abysmal polling numbers. Fewer than a third of Canadians believe he’s doing a good job. More than 70 percent say Canada is “broken” under his leadership.

Mr. Poilievre, who uses tough rhetoric and promotes himself as a common-sense solution finder, has led Conservatives to a double-digit lead over the Liberals — even though many Canadians recently told pollsters that they wouldn’t be able to pick him out of a lineup.

Mr. Poilievre, 45, likes to keep his messages under three words, and they usually rhyme or are alliterative: “Spike the hike!” “Axe the tax!”