Military procurement, the niqab controversy, more candidate gaffes and a lively French-language debate dominated headlines during the eighth week of the campaign. Here’s a look back at the highlights:

Monday

Back on the campaign trail, focus shifted to military procurement as Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau vowed to scrap the controversial planned purchase of F-35 fighter jets for cheaper alternatives, a cancellation that both the Conservatives and NDP said would harm the Canadian aerospace industry. 

The Liberal promise came as documents exclusively obtained by CTV News revealed that the Harper government’s plan to overhaul the Royal Canadian Navy with a multi-billion dollar procurement to replace frigates and destroyers may be in trouble.

And in an interview with CTV Atlantic’s Steve Murphy, NDP Leader Tom Mulcair was pressed on the feasibility of his promise to create one million affordable child care spaces. 

Tuesday

Nanos Research’s daily tracking for CTV and The Globe and Mail had the three major parties locked within two percentage points of each other nationally. 

At a campaign stop in Montreal, Justin Trudeau said “under no circumstances” would the Liberals prop up a Conservative minority government should the Tories receive a small plurality of seats.

Harper was forced to defend a multimillion-dollar campaign pledge to match Terry Fox Foundation donations after Conservatives were accused of politicizing one of Canada’s most respected icons. Harper said the Fox foundation itself put forward the ideas on cancer research funding announced by outgoing Conservative MP James Moore over the weekend. However, a Terry Fox Foundation spokesperson said a letter requesting greater financial support for cancer research was sent to leaders of five political parties in Canada. 

Harper said he would aim to create 1.3 million net new jobs by 2020, while Mulcair said, if elected, his party would offer five more weeks of parental leave for single and two-parent families, as part of a proposal to improve employment insurance benefits. 

Wednesday

Following Trudeau’s lead, Mulcair also shot down the possibility of propping up a Conservative minority government, saying “there isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell,” the NDP would support Harper should he regain power with a slim margin of seats. 

Pitting him squarely against Harper, Mulcair also said during a campaign stop that he would withdraw the government’s appeal to the Supreme Court on the issue of banning niqabs during citizenship ceremonies.

Candidate gaffes were back in the spotlight, after an NDP candidate and a Conservative candidate came under fire for controversial statements. Alex Johnstone, who is running for the NDP in an Ontario riding apologized for an old Facebook comment that compared the electrified posts at Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau to phallic symbols.

She then found herself in more hot water when she admitted she didn’t know what Auschwitz was.

And, Conservative candidate Joe Daniel, who is seeking re-election in a Toronto riding, was caught on video alluding to a Muslim “agenda” to change Europe with refugees.

Thursday

Five party leaders – including the Bloc Quebecois’ Gilles Duceppe – duked it out for Quebecers’ support in a lively French-language debate that quickly turned heated as the issue of niqabs became front and centre. 

During one heated exchange, Harper dug in his heels, saying “Never will I say to my daughter that a woman has to cover her face because she is a woman.” Mulcair in turn accused the Conservative leader of playing a “dangerous” political game. 

The leaders also debated pipelines, Canada’s military missions in Syria and Iraq, and Quebec sovereignty.

Friday

Fresh off the French-language debate, Harper promised a ban on federal tax hikes, while Mulcair turned to forestry, promising that the NDP would pump $105 million over three years into the sector.

In Brampton, Ont., Trudeau talked family reunification, vowing to immediately double the number of entry applications for parents and grandparents of new immigrants to 10,000.

As the week came to a close, Trudeau also faced questions over a planned break from the campaign trail on the same weekend the Liberals’ platform economic framework is being released.