Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation Monday in an address to Canadians at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, Canada. Prime Minister Trudeau said he would resign as soon as the ruling Liberal Party selects a new leader. Dave Chan/AFP via Getty Images Hide caption
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Dave Chang/AFP via Getty Images
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced plans to resign on Monday, following loud calls from within his party for him to resign. Ending weeks of speculation, Trudeau said he will no longer lead the Liberal Party, but will remain prime minister until a successor is chosen.
Speaking to Canadians from outside his home at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, Prime Minister Trudeau said: “After the party selects its next leader through a robust national competitive process, I intend to resign as leader and prime minister.” ” he said.
Trudeau said he has begun the process for a new election, adding that it is clear “I will not be the best choice in that election.”
Ever since Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, a close ally of Prime Minister Trudeau who also served as Finance Minister, surprisingly resigned on December 16, momentum for Trudeau to leave the country has been steadily building.
A young leader who has lost support
Prime Minister Trudeau has served as Canada’s prime minister for nearly 10 years, having assumed the position at the age of 43. But his popularity has plummeted, especially among Canadians who blame Trudeau for raising the cost of living in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. His tenure has also been marked by a series of crises and missteps, with even his political allies increasingly criticizing his policies.
Prime Minister Trudeau on Monday defended his accomplishments during his time in office, particularly his social and economic policies, saying he has worked to support Canada’s middle class and alleviate poverty. He repeatedly cited “infighting” as the reason for his resignation and said parliament had been paralyzed for months amid heightened political rhetoric.
“It’s time for a reset,” he said. “It’s almost time for the temperature to drop.”
Prime Minister Trudeau won’t be leaving office anytime soon. His Liberal Party will now begin the process of selecting a new leader and will be asked to face Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poièvre, who has built a significant lead over Mr. Trudeau in recent polls. It will be.
Prime Minister Trudeau said Governor-General Mary Simon has granted his request to prorogue parliament until March 24, a move to give the Liberals more time to choose a new candidate.
Professor Fenn Hampson of Carleton University told NPR that many Canadians are very anxious about what will happen next.
“I don’t think there’s a worse time to make a leadership change, given the level of uncertainty, the domestic political uncertainty, the uncertainty of what the economy is going to do,” Hampson said.
Why now?
A politically weakened Prime Minister Trudeau faces two important deadlines this month. The Liberal Party recently scheduled a national caucus meeting to discuss the premier’s leadership on Wednesday. And the House was scheduled to return from its Christmas break on January 27th.
Both of these events increased pressure on Prime Minister Trudeau to resign. But 2025 was poised to become an election year anyway. Prime Minister Trudeau and his Liberal Party were on track to remain in power until this year under a deal struck with the left-wing opposition New Democratic Party in 2022.
Hampson said his dissatisfaction with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has grown with post-COVID-19 inflation, adding that as the Trudeau government seeks to increase the number of immigrants to lower Canada’s average age, “the second big A contributing factor was the increase in immigration, he added.
Mr. Trudeau showed skill at using social media and representative politics early in his career, said Stephen Marche, a Toronto-based author who has covered Mr. Trudeau for several U.S. publications. speaks. But Marche told NPR that the same dynamics led to his ouster, adding that Trudeau’s story appears to reflect an embrace of more progressive policies.
“I know it’s a very heavy word, but you know, he was Captain Waked. And the world is really, really, really against Wakeness.” said Marche.
What kind of damage did Chrystia Freeland’s resignation cause to Prime Minister Trudeau?
Freeland’s resignation is a damaging blunder for Trudeau, whose U.S. president-elect, Donald Trump, has repeatedly threatened to impose new tariffs on Canada and even threaten to annex the country’s northern neighbor. Inside, it was a self-inflicted embarrassment.
Freeland harshly criticized Trudeau’s policy plans in his published resignation letter. The timing of her departure was also shocking. It happened just before Freeland was scheduled to give a major speech on the state of the nation’s finances.
News quickly came out about the now infamous Zoom call. According to CBC, Prime Minister Trudeau has told Freeland that he intends to remove Freeland from his finance post, but it appears that Trudeau himself, rather than Freeland, will replace him with Mark Carney. He said he did so without finalizing his plans. .
What’s next?
Canada’s next general election was originally set for October 20, 2025, based on the timing of the previous election in the fall of 2021, but amid confusion surrounding the prime minister, coalition party officials said Monday that a spring election will be held. He said it was not planned. probably.
The timing puts Canada in an awkward position as it faces a long transition period during the first few months of the Trump presidency.
By convention, Canada’s prime minister is the leader of the party that wins the most seats in the House of Commons in a general election. As in the United Kingdom, the Prime Minister is the head of government and the monarch is the head of state.
