With mounting pressure and growing dissent from within his own Liberal Party in Canada, controversial Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced his resignation.
Addressing a press conference in Ottawa Trudeau said that he intends to resign as party leader and Prime Minister after the party selects its next leader and has asked the party President to start the process.
Canada goes to polls later this year and opinion polls indicate a win for the Opposition Conservative Party after almost a decade.
The potential contenders for the top job now include Canada’s Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs of Canada Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Francois-Philippe Champagne and former governor of the Bank of Canada Mark Carney.
Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre who at this stage has an edge in the upcoming elections according to the opinion polls observed on X, “Nothing has changed. Every Liberal MP and Leadership contender supported EVERYTHING Trudeau did for 9 years, and now they want to trick voters by swapping in another Liberal face to keep ripping off Canadians for another 4 years, just like Justin.”
The Canadian economy has experienced a decline during Trudeau’s nine years as Prime Minister, marked by slowing growth, high inflation, and increasing government debt. Additionally, Canada’s geopolitical standing has weakened under his leadership.
Trudeau effectively derailed the bilateral relationship with an important ally, India, by accusing it of being involved in the murder of a Khalistani terrorist, Hardeep Nijjar, in Canada. Neither Trudeau nor any Canadian official has provided any proof of this alleged involvement so far.
India has outrightly rejected these allegations and in fact has accused Canada of harbouring extremists on its soil for narrow political gains.
While there had been murmurs of dissent and occasional resignations in recent months, a political storm erupted in Canada when Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland unexpectedly resigned in December, sparking widespread calls for Prime Minister Trudeau to step down.
Reports suggest Freeland and Trudeau clashed over how to address US President-elect Donald Trump’s threats to impose crippling tariffs on Canadian imports.
Trudeau announced the suspension of parliament until March 24, delaying any election until at least May. This leaves him in charge of addressing Donald Trump’s tariff threats when Trump takes office in January.
Polls indicate that Trudeau’s Liberal Party trails the opposition Conservatives, led by Pierre Poilievre, by over 20% in national averages. With an election due by October, voter frustration over high prices and housing shortages is expected to deliver a Conservative victory.
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