Justin Trudeau has said he intends to step down after nine years as Canadian prime minister in the face of a mounting set of crises, leaving office once a new ruling party leader is chosen.
“I intend to resign as party leader, as prime minister, after the party selects its new leader,” the 53-year-old leader told reporters at a news conference in Ottawa on Monday.
“I care deeply about this country and I will always be motivated by what is in the best interests of Canadians. And the fact is, despite best efforts to work through it, parliament has been paralyzed for months after what has been the longest session of a minority parliament in Canadian history,” he said, adding that the country’s parliament will be suspended until March 24 while a new leader is chosen.
Trudeau, leader of the Liberal Party for 11 years and prime minister for nine, was facing a mounting set of crises, from Donald Trump’s tariff threats to the resignation of key allies and disastrous opinion polls. His resignation could be seen as the PM choosing to jump before he is pushed, ahead of a general election to be held later this year that he is widely expected to lose.
The election must be held on or before October 20, but could be brought forward. Polls show Trudeau’s Liberal Party is set to badly lose to the opposition Conservative Party, led by the firebrand Pierre Poilievre.
“This country deserves a real choice in the next election and it has become clear to me that if I’m having to fight internal battles I cannot be the best option in that election,” said Trudeau on Monday.
Trudeau said that Poilievre’s vision “is not the right one for Canadians.”
“Stopping the fight against climate change doesn’t makes sense. Backing off on the values and strength and diversity that Canada has always, always, worked to pull itself together on, is not the right path for the country. Attacking journalists, the CBC institutions: that’s not what Canadians need in this moment. We need an ambitious, optimistic view of the future, and Pierre Poilievre is not offering that,” he said.
The Liberal Party national executive, which controls leadership issues, is scheduled to meet this week, likely after the caucus.
Trudeau’s government was rocked by the surprise resignation of Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland – just hours before she was due to deliver her annual fiscal update.
In a blistering letter of resignation, she criticized Trudeau’s “political gimmicks,” likely referring to a two-month sales tax holiday and 250 Canadian dollar ($175) rebates for most workers.
Freeland said Canada could “ill afford” these policies, seen as a pre-election handout to claw back some voters, and coming as the country faces the serious prospect of huge tariffs which could be levied by the incoming Trump administration.
Trump, set to return to the White House on January 20, has said he will sign an executive order imposing a 25% tariff on all products coming into the US from Canada. Trump has also taken to belittling Trudeau and the country of Canada on social media, referring to the prime minister as the “governor” of the “Great State of Canada.”
Trudeau took the Liberals to power in 2015, promising “sunny ways” for Canada. He championed progressive issues like combating climate change and addressing historic abuses against Indigenous peoples, but the latter years of his premiership have been marked by rising economic discontent.
A viral confrontation with a steel worker, who criticized Trudeau for not addressing the high cost of living, captured the growing discontent among Canadians.
“You’re not really doing anything for us, Justin,” the worker remarked, highlighting a sentiment that resonated widely.
Trudeau was elected three times, most recently in 2021, when he remained in power but lost his governing majority. Since then, Poilievre’s Conservative Party has built a lead over the Liberal Party of more than 20% in national polling averages.
Poilievre has recently found a following with some in Trump’s base, including Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and owner of X. Late last year, Musk called Trudeau “an insufferable tool,” adding that Trudeau “won’t be in power for much longer.”
By CNN
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