Former Bank of Canada and Bank of England governor Mark Carney speaks as members of Canada’s Liberal Party gather to choose a successor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on March 9, 2025.
Blair Gable | Reuters
Former central banker Mark Carney won the race to become leader of Canada’s ruling Liberal Party and will succeed Justin Trudeau as prime minister, official results showed on Sunday.
Carney will take over at a tumultuous time in Canada, which is in the midst of a trade war with longtime ally the United States and must hold a general election soon.
Carney, 59, took 86% of votes cast to beat former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland in a contest in which just under 152,000 party members voted.
Trudeau announced in January that he would step down after more than nine years in power as his approval rating plummeted, forcing the ruling Liberal Party to run a quick contest to replace him.
“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,” Trudeau said.
“Now, as Canadians face, from our neighbor, an existential challenge, an economic crisis, Canadians are showing exactly what we are made of.”
Carney, a political novice, argued that he was best placed to revive the party and to oversee trade negotiations with U.S. President Donald Trump, who is threatening additional tariffs that could cripple Canada’s export-dependent economy.
Carney was the front-runner, with the most endorsements from party members and the most money raised among the four Liberal candidates.
Carney’s win marks the first time an outsider with no real political background has become Canadian prime minister. He has said his experience as the first person to serve as the governor of two G7 central banks – Canada and England – meant he was the best candidate to deal with Trump.
During the campaign, Carney said he supported dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs against the United States and a coordinated strategy to boost investment. He has repeatedly complained that Canada’s growth under Trudeau was not good enough.
The prospect of a fresh start for the Liberal Party under Carney, combined with Trump’s tariffs and his repeated taunts to annex Canada as the 51st U.S. state, led to a remarkable revival of Liberal fortunes.
Rally-around-the-flag moment
At the start of 2025 the party trailed by 20 or more points but is now statistically tied with the official opposition Conservatives led by career politician Pierre Poilievre in several polls.
At a protest outside Canada’s Parliament building in Ottawa on Sunday, dozens of Canadians held up signs protesting Trump with no reference to domestic politics.
“There is a rallying-around-the-flag moment that we would never have predicted a year ago,” said University of British Columbia politics professor Richard Johnston. “I think it’s probably true as we speak that the Liberals have been saved from oblivion.”
Two Liberal Party sources said Carney would call an election in coming weeks.
Polls though indicate that neither the Liberals nor the Conservatives would be able to form a majority government. An election must be held by October 20.
Carney could legally serve as prime minister without a seat in the House of Commons but tradition dictates that he should seek to win one as soon as possible.
In 1984, John Turner was not a legislator when he became prime minister after winning a Liberal leadership race.
Liberals sought to compare Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre to Trump in a recent advertisement. Poilievre in turn ramped up attacks on Carney on Sunday.
The Liberals “are going to pull a sneaky trick tonight,” Poilievre said at a campaign rally. “They’re going to try to get elected for a fourth term by replacing Justin Trudeau with his economic adviser, Mark Carney. … Donald Trump will have a big smile on his face.”
Carney has played down any role in advising Trudeau, noting his many global obligations left him with little time. Carney resigned all commercial posts after he launched his leadership bid in January.
