“I intend to resign as party leader and prime minister once the party has chosen its next leader,” he told reporters in the capital Ottawa.
Mr. Trudeau, who announced at the same time that parliament was suspended until March 24, will remain Prime Minister to give his party time to find a replacement.
“This country deserves a real choice in the next elections. It has become clear to me that if I have to fight internal battles, I cannot be Prime Minister,” he declared, moved.
Campaigns within the Liberal Party can last several months. And even if the process is accelerated, it is unlikely that Mr. Trudeau will leave office in the coming days.
He should therefore still be Prime Minister on January 20, when Donald Trump takes office.
The Prime Minister, who had announced his intention to run again, is trailing his conservative rival, Pierre Poilievre, by more than 20 points in the polls. The next legislative elections must be held no later than October 2025.
After nearly a decade in power, Justin Trudeau today suffers from low popularity ratings, being seen as responsible for the high inflation hitting the country as well as the housing and public services crisis.
A minority in Parliament, he was weakened by the withdrawal of his left-wing ally and the growing discontent within his own party.
In addition, chaos reigned in the capital Ottawa since the surprise resignation of Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who disagreed with Justin Trudeau on how to manage the looming economic war with the United States.
Donald Trump’s statements in recent weeks have aggravated the Canadian political crisis and caused a shock wave. The country is seeking a solution to the threats of the president-elect, who has promised to impose 25% customs duties on Canada and Mexico upon his return to power in January.
The United States is Canada’s largest trading partner and the destination of 75% of its exports. Nearly two million Canadians depend on it, out of a population of 41 million.
The current political context is “highly unusual”, commented Lori Turnbull, professor at Dalhousie University, to AFP.
During the holiday period, several personalities worked behind the scenes to take the lead of the party.
According to a source within the Liberal party to AFP, the former governor of the Bank of Canada Mark Carney, 59, who has been the party’s economic advisor since last summer, has notably increased his calls in recent days to evaluate its support. Just like former Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland.
The party is due to meet on Wednesday for a major meeting.
But several challenges await his successor, say experts, who are counting on a victory for the conservatives in the next elections.
“It’s a lost cause,” says André Lamoureux, specialist in political science at the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM). “No one is in a position today in the Liberal Party to recreate a craze, a movement of support.”
Eldest son of the charismatic Pierre Elliott Trudeau, former Prime Minister who died in 2000, Justin Trudeau has long sought his path: amateur boxer, snowboard instructor, English and French teacher…
Prime Minister, he made Canada the second country in the world to legalize cannabis, introduced medical assistance in dying, a carbon tax, launched a public inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women and will sign a modernized version of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
