Canada's newly appointed Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced an early general election, with the country set to vote on April 28. The election comes at a sensitive time for Canada, as it faces a trade war with the United States and U.S. President Trump's calls for Canada to become the 51st state, and these issues are expected to be a key focus for voters.
Read Also...:
Should DNA evidence be admissible in the trial of the Gilgo Beach serial killings suspect?
03-29, 2025
Utah bans fluoride in public drinking water, a first in the US
03-29, 2025
Government via the suburbs: The key seats the Coalition needs to win this federal election
03-29, 2025
As Trump prepares new tariffs, this beef-farmer congressman has singled out Australian Wagyu
03-29, 2025The election comes just nine days after Liberal Carney replaced Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister of Canada following Trudeau's resignation. Carney will now face a challenge from Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, whose Conservative Party has led in national polls since mid-2023, but recent polls suggest the race has become increasingly tight.
Carney stated in Ottawa on Sunday that he needs a clear and positive mandate to confront Trump. He pointed out, "We are facing the greatest crisis of our lives due to President Trump's unjust trade actions and his threats to our sovereignty." Carney, 60, previously served as the Governor of the Bank of England and the Bank of Canada, and has never served as a Member of Parliament, leaving his political experience yet to be tested.
In his brief few days in office, Carney made the most of his time, meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, and traveling to the Canadian Arctic to announce a partnership with Australia to develop a new Northern Radar System. He also abolished Trudeau's signature carbon tax climate policy, which had been strongly criticized by the Conservative Party.
Now, Carney will face ordinary voters who are concerned about the rapidly changing relationship between Canada and its historic ally, the United States, as well as the high cost of living at home. Shortly before announcing the early election, 45-year-old Conservative leader Poilievre sought to link Carney to the Liberal Party under Trudeau, who left office as a deeply unpopular leader. He called Trudeau's tenure "a lost decade for the Liberals" and accused the Liberals of weakening the nation by blocking resource development, failing to fund the military, and mismanaging immigration and the economy, claiming their "post-national globalist ideology" made Canada more vulnerable to Trump's trade wars.
Trump's existing and threatened tariffs on Canadian goods could bring economic instability to the country and potentially push Canada into recession. Trump imposed a 25% tariff on Canadian goods on March 2, before suspending it for a month. On March 12, a blanket 25% tariff on all aluminum and steel imports came into effect, hitting Canadian importers hard. The Trump administration plans to implement further global tariffs on April 2, during the second week of the campaign. So far, Canada has retaliated by imposing tariffs on approximately C$60 billion (US$42 billion; £32 billion) worth of U.S. goods.
Carney on Sunday called the trade war with the United States "one of the greatest threats of our lives." Referring to Trump, he said: "He wants to destroy us so that America can have us. We will not let this happen." Carney pledged further retaliatory action, but acknowledged that Canada's tariff response was limited, given the difference in economic size between the two countries. Poilievre said Canada must respond firmly to threats from the White House. "We must turn our anger and anxiety into action," he said. "We must become strong, self-reliant, and sovereign to stand up to the Americans."
The campaign will last five weeks, the shortest time allowed. In addition to the U.S.-Canada relationship, much of the focus will be on the economy, including the cost of living issues. In Canadian federal elections, voters do not directly elect the Prime Minister. Instead, the leader of the party with the most Members of Parliament traditionally becomes Prime Minister. Four major parties will contest the election: the Liberal Party, the Conservative Party, the New Democratic Party (NDP), and the Bloc Québécois, which only campaigns in the French-speaking province of Quebec, focusing on its regional interests. The Green Party and the People's Party of Canada are also in the race.
NDP leader Jagmeet Singh said on Sunday that neither Carney nor Poilievre is the right choice for Canada, accusing them of protecting the wealthy instead of ordinary Canadians. "You deserve a Prime Minister you can trust to make decisions in your best interests," he said. The Bloc Québécois is facing pressure from a surge in support for the Liberal Party in Quebec. Party leader Yves-François Blanchet is positioning his party as the voice of industries threatened by Trump, from aluminum to dairy and lumber, all of which are very important in the province. The Green Party is for the first time led by co-leaders: Jonathan Pedneault and Elizabeth May. "We must vote now like our country depends on it, because more than ever, it does," Pedneault said on Sunday.
At the dissolution of Parliament upon announcing the election, the Liberal Party held 153 seats in the House of Commons. The Conservative Party was the official opposition, with 120 seats. The Bloc Québécois had 33 seats, the NDP had 24 seats, and the Green Party had 2 seats.
