The last Quebec minister expected in the race for the leadership of the PLC, Minister François-Philippe Champagne announced on Tuesday afternoon that he was withdrawing. Rising star Karina Gould will launch her campaign this week. Former British Columbia Premier Christy Clark steps down after lying.
• Also read: Candidate for leadership of the PLC: Mark Carney hints at his intentions
• Also read: Freeland wanted to be caliph instead of the caliph
After Mélanie Joly and Steven MacKinnon, Mr. Champagne is the third Quebec minister from Justin Trudeau’s cabinet to pass his turn.
This is perhaps a sign that the so-called “principle of alternation” between an English-speaking leader and a French-speaking leader at the head of the Liberal Party of Canada (PLC) still holds.
Last week, Mr. Champagne invited the media to his office in Ottawa to indicate that he was thinking of diving into the adventure.
He is scheduled to address the media on the sidelines of a speech at the Economic Club of Toronto midday Tuesday.
Karina Gould, the rising star
A federal source has confirmed that rising PLC star Karina Gould will launch her campaign to succeed Justin Trudeau later this week.
As chance would have it, Mme Gould and Mr. Champagne are taking part in the same event which is to be held around 5 p.m. in Burlington, Ontario, the young Liberal minister’s hometown.
Now aged 37, Karina Gould was elected in 2015 and was appointed President of the Privy Council two years later, at the age of 29.
She has acted since the fall of 2023 as parliamentary leader of the Trudeau government.
Former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland and banker Mark Carney are expected to enter the race later this week. Other lesser-known candidates, such as former Montreal MP Frank Baylis and Ottawa-area MP Chandra Arya, have already announced they are moving forward.
Christy Clark se retire
Former BC Liberal premier Christy Clark was one of the big names to watch in this race.
Despite an already established organization and numerous volunteers, Mme Clark announced Tuesday that she would ultimately not be in the race, claiming that her French is still not up to par.
What happened in the meantime?
Last weekend, Mme Clark was caught lying in front of the CBC cameras: she claimed to have never been a member of the Conservative Party of Canada (PCC) and that her involvement in the PCC was more to support the candidacy of Jean Charest as a means of defeating Pierre Poilievre.
However, the Conservative Party has indeed registered Mme Clark as a member of the party in 2022. The affair created a mini outcry on social networks and many saw in this lie a hara-kiri of the campaign of Mme Clark.
