Canada's Trudeau, backed by rivals for now, has little chance to cash in on popularity boost

FILE PHOTO: Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during a meeting of the special committee on the COVID-19 outbreak, as efforts continue to help slow the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada May 20, 2020. REUTERS/Blair Gable/

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is soaring in the polls amid widespread approval of his handling of the coronavirus pandemic but has little chance of cashing in soon on his popularity with voters, insiders and analysts say.

Trudeau - working with powerful Conservative provincial premiers who usually oppose him - avoided a U.S.-style battle over how to tackle the outbreak, in part by promising hundreds of billions in spending.