Mark Carney, the former central banker-turned-centrist politician, triumphed over Chrystia Freeland in Sunday’s Liberal Party leadership race, paving the way for him to succeed Justin Trudeau as Canada’s next prime minister. He is expected to be sworn in early this week.
Carney, 59, whose resume is filled with decades of experience working at the highest levels of global finance but has never been elected to public office, now faces his first major economic reckoning as prime minister – managing Canada’s trade relationship with the United States.
In the end, he won the leadership election by a landslide, with nearly 86% of the vote, with 131,674 votes, with Trudeau’s former finance minister Chrystia Freeland coming in a very distant second with 11,134 votes.
In his acceptance speech, Carney tackled the Trump tariff threats head-on. “Donald Trump as we know has put unjustified tariffs on what we build, on what we sell, on how we make a living,” he said. “He’s attacking Canadian families, workers and businesses and we cannot let him succeed and we won’t.”
To rousing applause, Carney added, “We didn’t ask for this fight, but Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves, so the Americans, they should make no mistake, in trade as in hockey, Canada will win.”
Trump’s Trade War Boosts Carney’s Popularity
President Donald Trump’s tariffs and controversial comments about Canada becoming the 51st state likely played a role in Carney’s win and could help his party — which was struggling against the conservatives in the polls just two months ago — hold onto power in the next general election.
“Canadians are really feeling angry, hurt. Canada feels so disrespected in this relationship right now,” Jamie Tronnes, the executive director of the Center for North American Prosperity and Security told NPR.
“This has led to a resurgent nationalism, which is something that we haven’t seen the likes of in a long time in Canada, that has really benefited the Liberal Party.”
Carney’s election makes him only the second prime minister in Canadian history without a seat in parliament. While there is no rule against this, precedent suggests Carney will call federal elections soon after being sworn in as prime minister where he will face off with conservative leader Pierre Poilievre.
As the Liberal party’s popularity continues to surge in the polls, many Canadians see Carney as a steady, diplomatic globalist who knows how to navigate international challenges, particularly with the U.S. under Trump’s increasingly strongman negotiating tactics.
In contrast, Poilievre has faced criticism for an alignment with Trump-like rhetoric, including vows to put “Canada First.”
“Progressive voters really respond to (Poilievre) like they would respond to a Trump-type character,” said Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs, a global public opinion research group. “He’s more aggressive than Canadians are comfortable with.”
Trump, meanwhile, has marched on with threats to impose more tariffs on Canadian goods, which could cripple Canada’s economy. The escalating trade tensions come as the two countries remain entangled in an ongoing trade dispute that has already seen tariffs imposed on key sectors such as steel, aluminum, and agriculture.
But Carney knows what it’s like to weather tough economic storms. He served as Governor of the Bank of Canada during the 2008 financial crisis and later became the first non-British person to be appointed as Governor of the Bank of England, where he oversaw the bank’s post-Brexit transition.
