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The thin cloth layers also showed off his mettle. It felt like -22 degrees in Ottawa this morning, and Trudeau stood outside for 27 minutes, quipping he would “wing it” after his notes were blown off the podium by the wind. After he left, a glass of water that had been placed in front of him was removed by an aide, who marvelled that it was partially frozen.

Whatever you think about Trudeau leaving the public stage, it was a fittingly theatrical exit for a Prime Minister who arrived in politics on a wave of youthful enthusiasm but went out struggling with broad disapproval in the polls.

Trudeau was greeted like a Tiger Beat spread in a locker when he became Liberal party leader in 2013. The day of his swearing in as Prime Minister on Nov. 5, 2015, he wore a sharp blue suit and tie with cuffs protruding at the exact correct proportion and gleaming brown shoes. He was flanked by his fashionable wife, Sophie Gr茅goire Trudeau, wearing Canadian designer Erdem, their two young children and a cabinet of 50 per cent women.

There is no denying Trudeau had style; he was celebrated internationally for it. He ushered in an expressive era in our nation鈥檚 capital, variously rocking long, curly locks, tattoos and beards. In 2017, Esquire called him the 鈥淏est Dressed Man in Politics,鈥� touting his cognac shoes, his ability to properly calibrate his tie width with his lapel width, and his denim choices: 鈥淭he Venn diagram of intersection of political leaders and men who wear white jeans well is incredibly small, but Trudeau is sitting right at the centre of it.鈥�

GQ offered 10 reasons why 鈥淛ustin Trudeau is the most stylish politician alive right now鈥� in 2016, including the khaki tuxedo he wore to his 2005 wedding and his penchant for striped socks.

Justin鈥檚 father, Pierre Trudeau, was of course the original political style icon, with the rose in his lapel, the swirling cape and that insouciant attitude. Justin’s frozen podium performance echoed his father鈥檚 famous 鈥渨alk in the snow鈥� at the end of his own fourth term in office.

Pierre鈥檚 Euro vibe wouldn鈥檛 fly today. Too pretentious, sadly.

His son, a former drama teacher and snowboard instructor, went for a more approachable image. Justin tended to roll up his sleeves, employing the political symbolism of the 鈥渆veryman鈥� digging in and getting down to work.

罢谤耻诲别补耻鈥檚 lowest sartorial moment came on a 2018 official visit to India, when he and his family cosplayed in local traditional garments. It was the beginning of his image tide turning. He was trying too hard, and missed the mark by a mile.

Consistency is key in political dressing. Credibility and competence are projected by simple things like 鈥渁 good haircut, clean shoes, well-tailored clothing,鈥� as political image-maker Gabor Apor told me in 2023. 鈥淪uits, for instance, should always be fit properly, whether off the rack, or bespoke.鈥�

Apor, who recently died, helped craft Ontario premier David Peterson鈥檚 public persona through clothing choices like his signature red ties. A person鈥檚 image, especially a politician鈥檚, 鈥渟hould tell their story before they even open their mouths,鈥� said Apor.

Sombre clothing, such as the dark garments Trudeau chose today, conveys a visual plea for dignity and convention.

On Bay Street, a corporate lawyer headed to 鈥減ut down鈥� a company on the verge of bankruptcy tends to pull out the black funeral suit. It鈥檚 tradition 鈥� or at least it was when suiting for the office was still the norm, before casualization via sports jackets, dark jeans and black sneakers took hold.

Trudeau probably has plenty of those groovy sneakers. All the lighter-hearted moments from his decade in power will live on in photo carousels both lauded and embarrassing, but today he opted to go back to a time-honoured visual strategy: dark, crisp and serious. A solemn message to punctuate the ending of a political era, one he鈥檚 leaving much less ebulliently than he began.