Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney won another term on Monday night in a turnaround for his Liberal Party.
The Liberal Party surged in popularity as President Trump took an increasingly aggressive stance toward Canada.
It is still unclear whether the Liberals have achieved a majority of seats in the House of Commons. A minority government would require support from other parties to pass legislation.
Carney’s acceptance speech early Tuesday morning was Canada’s response to Trump’s policies. “As I’ve been warning for months, America wants our land, our resources, our water,” he
said. “President Trump is trying to break us so he can own us. That will never happen.” He warned Canadians that the road ahead would be difficult and might require sacrifices.
The Conservative Party had been leading in polls until March, when Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods took effect and Carney replaced Justin Trudeau as prime minister.
For the Conservative leader, Pierre Poilievre, his party’s defeat was compounded by the fact that he lost his seat, which he had held continuously for 20 years, to the Liberal candidate.
The election was dominated by Trump and his relentless focus on Canada, America’s closest ally and trading partner. He imposed tariffs on Canadian goods, pushing the country toward a recession, and repeatedly threatened to annex it as the 51st state. This was a threat Trump repeated as Canadians were heading to the polls.
Carney promoted himself as the anti-Trump candidate and focused his campaign on dealing with the United States. Carney benefited from Trump’s actions.
The Conservatives had been dominating polls for years, building a platform against the Liberals and Trudeau around the argument that they had dragged Canada into prolonged economic malaise.
The vote was effectively a ‘referendum’ against Trump’s treatment of America’s allies and its trading partners.