Former central banker Mark Carney won a resounding victory on Sunday to lead Canada's Liberal Party and is set to become the country's next Prime Minister. Now, he faces the daunting tasks of confronting U.S. President, handling potential annexation threats, trade disputes, and tariffs, and steering the party through an upcoming challenging general election.
Carney clinched 86% of the party members' votes. Following this triumph, Canada's Governor-General, the representative of Britain's King Charles in Canada, will extend an invitation to Carney to form a government. This move will position him to succeed Justin Trudeau as the prime minister.
However, the longevity of the reformed Liberal government is uncertain. Sources within the Liberal Party suggest that Carney is likely to trigger an election soon, relying on a resurgence in the party's popularity in polls. Alternatively, should Carney delay, his political rivals have vowed to seek government defeat upon Parliament's reconvening.
Although the Conservatives had been leading in polls for months, the political dynamics shifted with the emergence of Trump and the challenges posed by trade. The latest polls show a close race between the Liberals and the opposition party.
Carney faces the arduous task of maintaining this momentum, urging Canadians to grant the party another opportunity after its decade-long tenure under Trudeau. Simultaneously, he must navigate through the rapidly changing trade war landscape.
Despite his lack of prior electoral experience, Carney surged to the forefront of the Liberal leadership race, surpassing two women who previously served in Trudeau's Cabinet. He pledged to revoke the carbon tax and halt a planned capital gains tax increase. Additionally, he supports retaliatory tariffs against Trump's trade measures.
Carney vowed to dismantle trade barriers within Canada, accelerate housing construction, and put a cap on immigration, deviating from Trudeau's strategies. The Liberals highlight similarities between Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre and Trump in recent campaign ads, while Poilievre intensified criticisms of Carney.
According to experts, Carney will focus on policy divergences essential for countering Poilievre, acknowledging the potential implications of these shifts on policymaking. Managing Trump's policies while staying composed will be a key challenge for Carney's administration.