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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced he is resigning after almost a decade in power, following weeks of speculation over his political future.
He added that he was suspending parliament until March 24 to give his Liberal party time to choose a new leader.
“I intend to resign as party leader and as prime minister after the party selects a new leader,” Trudeau said.
“Parliament has been paralysed for months,” Trudeau said in Ottawa on Monday. “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.”
The 53-year-old Trudeau’s popularity has been at a historic low after voters and members of his own party turned against him following a turbulent period of speculation about his ability to govern the G7 country.
The New Democratic party — a vital ally in parliament — announced last month that it no longer supported the minority Liberal government and alongside other opposition parties would support a no-confidence vote as soon as early January, triggering an election.
Trudeau’s move to suspend — or prorogue — parliament means he can avoid a no-confidence vote, and has prompted a backlash from his critics.
Pierre Poilievre, whose Conservative party leads the Liberals by 25 points in polls, had repeatedly called for Trudeau to step down or call an early election, citing Canada’s looming challenges with incoming US president Donald Trump.
On Monday, Poilievre accused Trudeau’s party of trying to “trick voters by swapping in another Liberal face to keep ripping off Canadians”.
Liberal members’ “only objection [to Trudeau] is that he is no longer popular enough to win an election and keep them in power”, Poilievre added in a statement on X. “They want to protect their pensions and pay cheque by sweeping their hated leader under the rug months before an election.”
Trump, who had repeatedly mocked Trudeau in recent weeks after threatening to impose tariffs on Canada, issued another broadside on Truth Social on Monday after the prime minister’s announcement.
“Many people in Canada LOVE being the 51st State. The United States can no longer suffer the massive Trade Deficits and Subsidies that Canada needs to stay afloat. Justin Trudeau knew this, and resigned,” he wrote. If Canada merged with the US it would face no tariffs and be secure from Russia and China, Trump said.
Ottawa-born Trudeau, the son of charismatic Liberal leader Pierre Trudeau, who was prime minister between 1968 and 1979, and from 1980 to 1984, worked as a school drama teacher in Vancouver before being elected Liberal party leader in April 2013.
His tenure as prime minister began in October 2015 when the young newcomer led his Liberal party to a resounding victory over the Conservatives and their unpopular leader, Stephen Harper.
During his time in office, Trudeau passed laws to decriminalise soft drugs, advance gender equality and promoted reconciliation with First Nations as well as the urgent need to tackle climate change. He also pledged to accept 25,000 Syrian refugees escaping war in their home country, despite anxiety over immigration levels.
But Trudeau’s popularity has collapsed over the past year due to soaring living costs and a housing affordability crisis. His efforts to boost Canada’s post-pandemic economy through record immigration also faced a widespread backlash.
An Angus Reid poll released on December 30 showed the percentage of voters who intended to vote for the Liberal party had sunk to 16 per cent, its worst level since Trudeau came to power, while the prime minister’s disapproval rating, via the pollster’s “Trudeau Tracker”, was at an all-time high of 74 per cent.
The sudden resignation on December 16 of Chrystia Freeland, the former finance minister who had once been a close ally of the prime minister, following disputes with Trudeau over government spending, sparked renewed calls for him to quit from both the opposition and his own party.
Freeland thanked Trudeau on X on Monday for his “years of service to Canada and Canadians. I wish him and his family the very best.”
After Freeland’s move last month, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh said on December 20 that his party was minded to withdraw its support from Trudeau or the Liberal party. Singh had also pledged that his party’s voting bloc would consider bringing down the government when parliament resumed at the end of January — a statement that made it almost certain that Trudeau’s party would lose power.
Singh said on Monday that Trudeau had let down Canadians “over and over”. He added: “It doesn’t matter who leads the Liberals. They don’t deserve another chance.”
The Canadian dollar, which is trading near an almost five-year low against the US dollar, softened slightly following Trudeau’s announcement to C$1.436. It remained stronger on the day as the US dollar endured a broader sell-off against rival currencies.
Canada’s S&P/TSX Composite equities benchmark recovered from a morning dip and was 0.3 per cent higher at midday in Toronto.
Additional reporting by Peter Wells in New York
