Canada’s liberals won the general election on Monday, when voters gave Mark Carney a full term as prime minister, according to National Broadcasting Station CBC/Radio Canada.
The full results should be made available on Monday or early Tuesday. But the voter’s decision sealed off a surprising turn of events in the liberals, months ago, which seemed uncertain that they would lose to the Conservative Party led by career politician Pierre Polyeble. Carney has been prime minister since March, when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resigned.
The election is surprising in many ways, with candidates and many voters describing it as the most important vote of their lifetime.
It is dominated by President Trump and his relentless focus on Canada, America’s closest ally and trading partner. Trump has imposed tariffs on Canadian goods, pushing it towards the recession, and repeatedly threatening to annex it as the 51st state. Even if Canadians were heading for the polls on Monday morning, he repeated the desire, claiming that they would bring economic and military benefits on social media.
Kearney, 60, promoted himself as an anti-Trump candidate, centered around a campaign on dealing with the US, and ultimately benefited from the US president’s stance.
The 45-year-old Poilierbre and conservatives have dominated polls for many years, building a platform for liberals and Trudeau, and building a platform for debates that they dragged Canada into long-term economic lies.
But they saw the double-digit lead evaporate rapidly after Trump’s aggression towards Canada and Trudeau’s resignation.
Canadians heading for the polls became obsessed with both their relationship with their neighbors in the South and their relationship with their financial situation at home. The concerns about affordability for housing, primarily from opinions surveys conducted before the election was presented.
But Canada’s choice on Monday also came as a kind of referendum on the way Trump and the way he has dealt with American allies and their trading partners.
It was the second major international election since Trump came to power after Germany, and Canada’s handling of ruptures in relations with the US has been closely watched around the world.
The election also highlighted that Trump’s brand of conservative politics could be toxic to conservatives elsewhere if he was seen as too in line with his ideological and rhetorical style. Poilliebre, who opposed the “radical awakening ideology,” pledged to give back Canadian national broadcasters and said he would cut foreign aid, but said he had apparently lost voters on the centre list, a pre-election poll proposed.
For Carney, Monday’s victory marked an astonishing moment when he quickly rose to Canada’s political establishment since joining the race to replace Trudeau in January.
A political novelty but policy-making veteran, Mr. Carney’s measured, serious tone and definition towards Mr. Trump’s aggressive overtures helped sway voters who had been contemplating supporting the Conservatives, according to polls and some individual voters.
On Monday there was ample evidence that Mr. Carney’s personality and background helped the liberals. He is a Harvard University and Oxford-educated economist and served as the Bank of Canada governor during the Bank of England during the global financial crisis and Brexit of 2008. He later served on the Corporate Committee, becoming a leading voice on climate-conscious investment.
Poilliebre and other critics tried to frame Kearney as an out-of-touch elitist who spent many of his great adults apart from Canada and little knew about the country or its people.
They also attacked Mr. Carney for his experience working in China, which interfered in Canadian elections, saying some of his policy proposals would bear the Canadian finances and make it difficult for the country’s economy to flourish.
Despite Monday’s victory, the road will be tough for Mr. Carney and his new government. First of all, he must actually engage in Trump’s unpredictable attitude towards Canada and discuss difficult issues, including trade and security.
And he needs to show voters that his economic policy qualifications can really be used to improve Canada’s slow economic growth and sustained high unemployment.
