Former central banker Mark Carney has won the leadership race for Canada’s ruling Liberal Party, securing his position as the country’s next prime minister, official results confirmed on Sunday.
Carney, 59, won decisively with 86% of the votes, defeating former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland in a contest that saw nearly 152,000 party members cast their ballots. He takes over at a challenging time, with Canada embroiled in a trade war with the United States under President Donald Trump and facing an imminent general election.
“There’s someone trying to weaken our economy,” Carney said, referring to Trump, drawing loud boos from the party gathering. “He’s attacking Canadian workers, families, and businesses. We can’t let him succeed.”
Carney vowed that his leadership would bring bold changes. “This won’t be business as usual. We must act in ways we never imagined, at speeds we never thought possible,” he said.
His rise to power follows Trudeau’s January announcement that he would step down after more than nine years in office, as his approval ratings plummeted. Trudeau acknowledged the gravity of the moment, stating, “Make no mistake, this is a nation-defining moment. Democracy is not a given. Freedom is not a given. Even Canada is not a given.”
Despite being a political newcomer, Carney argued that his experience as the only person to have led two G7 central banks—Canada and the United Kingdom—made him best suited to navigate Canada’s economic challenges and trade tensions with Trump.
“My government will keep our tariffs in place until the Americans show us respect,” Carney declared, maintaining Trudeau’s C$30 billion retaliatory tariffs against U.S. trade measures.
Carney’s victory marks a historic moment as the first time a political outsider with no prior elected experience has risen to lead Canada.
