Mark Carney will run in Ottawa area as he seeks to join parliament
The election will take place against the backdrop of a trade war and sovereignty threats from US President Donald Trump.
New Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will run in an Ottawa area district as he seeks to join parliament for the first time, two officials familiar with the matter said.
It comes a day before Mr Carney triggers an early general election before a vote on April 28. The election will take place against the backdrop of a trade war and sovereignty threats from US President Donald Trump.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak publicly, said Mr Carney will run to represent the suburban Ottawa area of Nepean. The election campaign for 343 seats or districts in the House of Commons will last 37 days
The party that commands a majority in the House of Commons, either alone or with the support of another party, will form the next government and its leader will be prime minister.
Mr Carney replaced Justin Trudeau, who announced his resignation in January, but remained in power until the Liberal Party elected a new leader on March 9 following a leadership race by the governing party.
Mr Carney, sworn in as Canada’s 24th prime minister on March 14, has said the government in a time of crisis needs a strong and clear mandate.
The governing Liberals had appeared poised for a historic election defeat this year until Mr Trump declared a trade war.
Mr Trump has repeatedly said that Canada should become the 51st US state and he acknowledged on Friday that he has upended Canadian politics.
What Mr Trump has not said is that the almost daily attacks on Canada’s sovereignty have infuriated Canadians. That has led to a surge in Canadian nationalism that has bolstered Liberal poll numbers.
The opposition Conservatives hoped to make the election about Mr Trudeau, whose popularity declined as food and housing prices rose and immigration surged.
But after decades of bilateral stability, the vote is now expected to focus on who is best equipped to deal with Mr Trump.
Mr Trump put 25% tariffs on Canada’s steel and aluminium and is threatening sweeping tariffs on all Canadian products — as well as all of America’s trading partners — on April 2.
Mr Carney still has not had a phone call with Mr Trump and that might not happen now until after the election. Mr Trump mocked Mr Trudeau by calling him governor, but he has not yet mentioned Mr Carney’s name.
Mr Carney, 60, was the head of the Bank of Canada during the 2008 financial crisis.
In 2013, he became the first non citizen of the United Kingdom to run the Bank of England — helping to manage the impact of Brexit.
Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the Conservatives, is Mr Carney’s main challenger.
The party and Mr Poilievre were heading for a huge victory in Canada’s federal election this year until Mr Trump’s near-daily trade and annexation threats derailed them.
Mr Poilievre, 45, for years the party’s go-to attack dog, is a career politician and firebrand populist who says he will put “Canada first”.
He attacks the mainstream media and vows to defund Canada’s public broadcaster.
