Whichprimeminister.ca identifies the Canadian prime minister (past or current) that a respondent most resembles in terms of personality.
How this project came to be...
This personality test was launched on May 08 2020 as a personal 'quarantine project' during the COVID-19 pandemic.
My fiancée had found the existing "Which Prime Minister" Buzzfeed-esque quizs very limited - and the dearth of a good test piqued my interest.
Combining my knowledge of Canadian political history with my amateur coding skills, I set out to make a test which was as comprehensive and accurate as a silly internet personality test could hope to be.
How it works...
In principle, the test is based on a set of attributes that were pre-assigned to each prime minister - the difference between your results and these settings is then calculated. The more different your results are from a prime minister's pre-assigned settings, the less of a match you are with them.
I think it's important to stress that the test is a personality test, not a political values test. What I was most interested in comparing was various styles of leadership and social and political interaction.
Some results are more common than others...
Since John Abbott has the most 'moderate' of the attributes assigned, respondents will often be matched to Abbott if their responses are moderate. There is nothing wrong with being match with Senator Abbott! At one time, Abbott was considered a steady hand and a reliable source of wise counsel.
Out of the 'gregarious' prime ministers, Justin Trudeau, Wilfrid Laurier, John Turner, and John A Macdonald, are the most common results. Out of the 'introverted' prime ministers, John Thompson, Alexander Mackenzie, and Robert Borden, are the most common results. The quiz's 'rarest' result appears to be John Diefenbaker, according to self-reported responses on social media:
The response...
I was overjoyed with the response to the test. It quickly filtered through Ottawa and the rest of Canada and was shared on social media by leading journalists, authors, parliamentarians, and even sitting cabinet ministers. Thousands of visitors to the site took the test on the day of its launch. At one point, "John Turner" was trending on Twitter because of the reaction to the test.
I've especially enjoyed seeing people's responses to their results. Some have sought out further biographical information on prime ministers, I know of some others who even purchased books to read up on them further. I had hoped to engage Canadians with our political history a little and raise people's spirits in a difficult time with a fun activity.
Will you update this site for new Prime Ministers?
Ask nicely when the time comes!
Richard Forbes, Creator.