Pressure caused the Canadian Prime Minister to resign

“I intend to resign as party leader as well as the position of Prime Minister,” Mr. Justin Trudeau, leader of the Canadian government since 2015, said on January 6. “The country deserves a real choice in the upcoming election. I gradually realized that if I have to compete internally, I am not the best choice for that event.”

The Canadian Prime Minister affirmed that he will leave office when the ruling Liberal Party finds a successor before March 24, when the Canadian parliament reconvenes and the opposition announces it will hold a vote of no confidence to overthrow him. Mr. Trudeau’s government.

Mr. Trudeau made the decision after months of facing pressure from both inside and outside the ruling Liberal Party. His reputation has declined two years ago, when people were dissatisfied with rising living costs and housing shortages.

“He should have resigned more than a year ago,” said Rob Gwett, 29, who lives in Toronto, but added that “better late than never.”

Mr. Trudeau, 53 years old, is the eldest son of late Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. He worked as a snowboarding instructor, bartender and teacher before entering politics in the 2000s. He was elected to a parliamentary seat in 2008, representing the working class in Montreal.

In 2013, Mr. Trudeau became leader of the Liberal Party and was elected Prime Minister in 2015 with a commitment to bring a “bright path” for Canada, take action to combat climate change and protect the rights of indigenous communities. refugees. He was re-elected in 2019 and 2021, making him one of the longest-serving Canadian leaders.

“We were elected in 2015 to fight for the middle class. And that is exactly what we have done over the years,” Mr. Trudeau said. “We reduce taxes, increase benefits for families of this group. We ensure the economy works for all, not just for the few.”

But in recent years, the economy is also the problem that has caused him to lose support from voters. Like many Western countries, Canada also suffered record inflation and rising food prices. The housing crisis in Canada pushed up house prices in some areas by 30-40%, further increasing discontent.

A conversation between Mr. Trudeau and a steel worker that went viral on social networks partly demonstrates this. “You really can’t do anything for us,” workers criticized Mr. Trudeau for failing to address the escalating cost of living.

Political scandals during his long term “added fuel to the fire”. Mr. Trudeau was criticized in 2017 for accepting personal gifts and taking his family on vacation instead of attending the event during Canada’s first celebration of the Day for Truth and Reconciliation in 2021.

Choosing to go on vacation like that “was a mistake and I regret this,” Mr. Trudeau told the press at the time. “I was focused on making things right.”

Mr. Trudeau did not become a reformer on core issues expected by most voters such as climate change or reconciliation with indigenous communities, said Maxwell Cameron, professor of political science at the University of British Columbia. , comment with AFP.

He was re-elected twice, but both with narrow margins and had to lead a minority government, meaning the ruling party did not hold a majority of seats in parliament.

“He’s been in office too long,” said Genevieve Tellier, a political science professor at the University of Ottawa. “Disappointment overwhelmed Prime Minister Trudeau because he promised too much.”

In the first half of 2023, poll results show that the Liberal Party is gradually being left behind by the opposition Conservative Party. The gap suddenly widened in August of the same year, a signal that the Liberal Party would lose the 2025 election.

The governing coalition fractured in September 2024, when the New Democratic Party (NDP) announced it was abandoning its support for the Liberal Party, forcing Mr. Trudeau to look for new partners. Canadian politics was further shaken when US President-elect Donald Trump at the end of November threatened to impose tariffs on Mexican and Canadian goods if the two countries did not stop illegal immigration into the US.

Disagreements in how to deal with Mr. Trump caused Mr. Trudeau to lose an important ally, when deputy prime minister and finance minister Chrystia Freeland resigned on December 16. As tensions increased, the opposition Conservatives, and even some ruling Liberal Party MPs, began calling for Prime Minister Trudeau to leave his seat.

The NDP leader announced that he will propose a vote of no confidence when parliament returns to work on January 27, after the winter break. The leader of the opposition Bloc Quebecois party, which holds more seats than the NDP, pledged to support the motion and said that Mr. Trudeau has no exit door. After Mr. Trudeau resigns, the Canadian parliament will postpone its meeting until March.

For Stephanie Chouinard, a politics professor at Queen’s University, the Trudeau era should not be considered a failure. She cited the Canadian Prime Minister’s effective social programs, including policies to help reduce child care costs.

“It’s a progressive government, completely different from what we’ve seen since the 1970s,” Ms. Chouinard said.

After Mr. Trudeau’s resignation announcement, the Liberal Party will begin the race to find a new leader, expected to take many months. The new leader of the Liberal Party will also become prime minister and lead this party in the upcoming election, scheduled to take place before October 20.

Mr. Trudeau’s request for parliament to postpone the meeting until March 24 means extending the time for the Liberal Party to elect a leader, avoiding the opposition from casting a vote of no confidence to depose the government as early as January for early elections. However, this means that many bills awaiting approval will not be processed.

According to observers, some of the leading candidates for Mr. Trudeau’s successor are former governor of the Canadian central bank Mark Carney, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Francois-Philippe Champagne, and former Deputy Prime Minister Freeland. , Secretary of State Melanie Joly or Secretary of the Treasury Dominic LeBlanc.

Poll results announced by Ipsos Canada on December 22 show that the Conservative Party is receiving support from 45% of voters, the Liberal Party and NDP both receive 20%. If this ratio accurately reflects the election results, the Conservative Party will win big.

Shachi Kurl, president of opinion pollster Angus Reid, said the new leader could help reduce the damage, but the Liberal party is still in trouble in the upcoming election.

“Voters are starting to get tired, because this is a Liberal-led government for the 10th year in a row. At some point, the milk will expire. I think this milk is starting to taste sour,” Mr. Kurl told Reuters.