Politicians who favor policies to fight global warming that will impose big costs on consumers might take a lesson from what’s happening in Canada.

The Trudeau government imposed a new carbon tax on its citizens effective April 1, 2019. (Yes, indeed, April Fool’s Day!) But it faces legal challenges in the provinces of Ontario, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and New Brunswick, none of which has its own carbon tax, which is why the federal tax went into effect in them.

Even provinces like Alberta, which already have their own carbon taxes, are moving to end them. The new Alberta Premier Jason Kenney is keen on making Alberta free from carbon tax, both provincial and federal. “By May 30th there will no longer be an Alberta carbon tax,” he said.

But it’s not the legal challenges that should disturb those politicians who favor the tax. It’s voters’ response.

In Alberta, the change in government after the April 2019 election results meant that the pro-carbon tax NDP party was ousted and the anti-carbon tax conservatives swept into power.

In Ontario too, Doug Ford was elected premier because of his campaign promise to abolish the carbon tax in that province.

It won’t be surprising if the federal carbon tax plays a major role in upcoming elections and hands the Trudeau government a big defeat. That would be a lesson for politicians in other developed countries.

Federal carbon taxes, as proposed in the U.S., are a recipe for political defeat. Voters are no longer in the dark regarding the radically lethal nature of extreme carbon taxes. The issue of climate change, the increasing influence of climate policy on domestic governance, and the associated taxes will likely be key factors on how the political parties in developed countries fare in the upcoming elections.