Trudeau turns to influencers to get message to younger Canadians [Video]

OTTAWA –

Dennis Mathu and Stephanie Gordon first started posting financial-advice videos on YouTube three years ago — a side hustle that helped to scratch a creative itch.

They never imagined it would lead them down some of the most powerful political corridors in Canada.

Mathu and Gordon — Steph & Den, as they’re known online — were among several content creators invited to Tuesday’s federal budget lockup, where they got early access to Ottawa’s new spending blueprint.

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It’s an invitation typically reserved for experts, stakeholders and mainstream media. But the federal Liberals are embracing influencers as they seek to win back disillusioned millennials, gen-Z voters and others who consume information through social media.

“They are seeing we are building this audience and they want to tap into that,” said Gordon, 27.

Steph & Den has a target audience of 18- …