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In the Brexit referendum and Donald Trump's takeover of the Republican Party some pundits see proof that restless voters are rejecting the guidance of political leaders, business elites and mainstream news media.

Could a demagogue like Trump, arousing xenophobic passions, emerge in Canada?

No.

Canada has had politicians with Trump-like impacts. Their opponents underestimate firebrands, and then they disrupt the system.

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By now, under a typical government, a federal election in Canada called on August 2 would nearly be over. But Stephen Harper's fetish for trying to manipulate the public created an 11-week campaign instead of the ordinary 37 days. A seemingly everlasting election gives Harper's Conservatives more time to raise money while exhausting their opponents' bank accounts.

62%

Percentage of Canadians who place themselves along the middle of the political spectrum, according to an Environics survey of public opinion.

24%

Proportion of Canadians who self-identify as right-wing -- 10 percentage points higher than those who saw themselves on the political right in 2010. They're more likely to be male, in the top income bracket, and/or immigrant.

14%

Proportion of Canadians who self-identify as left-wing. They're more likely to be under 30, university-educated, and/or cite no religious affiliation.

37%

Two years ago the Occupy Movement propelled inequality into the news. Today Occupy is gone from the headlines, and inequality hasn't made it to the political agenda.

Think-tanks, economists and some politicians talk a lot about inequality. What do Canadians think?

In a Forum Research poll in November, 86 per cent agreed that "there is a growing income gap in Canada, where the rich are getting too rich and the poor are getting too poor."

-  76 per cent also agreed the "provincial and federal governments should do more to redistribute wealth from the richest to poorest Canadians." Fifty per cent agreed strongly.