Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mélanie Joly, announced Friday morning that she is giving up her candidacy for leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada in order to replace Justin Trudeau.
She made this announcement at the entrance to a meeting to prepare for the next Trump government on Friday in Ottawa. She says she wants to continue “doing her job” at the head of Canadian diplomacy during this decisive moment for the country, which she places “at the forefront”.
“Am I ready to be the first woman to lead the Liberal Party of Canada? The answer is yes. […] Am I ready to put aside my responsibilities as Minister of Foreign Affairs at a crucial moment in the Canada-United States relationship? The answer is no. Then, I can’t do both,” said the Montreal minister.
Mélanie Joly indicated Wednesday that she was considering the option of entering the fray to replace Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau. Among the reasons that made her hesitate was her wish to become a mother. His colleague, new Minister of Finance, Dominic LeBlanc, announced the same day that he would not be in the race either.
The Liberal Party of Canada released the criteria for aspiring leaders late Thursday evening, including an application fee of $350,000. The party does not prohibit cabinet members from running for leader. Candidates must apply no later than January 23.
Only two people announced their candidacy before knowing the exact details of the leadership race, including only one sitting Liberal MP, Chandra Arya, who does not speak French. Montreal businessman Frank Baylis, former MP for the Pierrefonds — Dollard riding, also got involved.
Good chances, but…
Mme Joly, however, believes that she would have had a good chance of victory if she had started. “I am a born organizer,” she boasted, listing the main achievements of her career, such as her candidacy for mayor of Montreal in 2013. She did not want to give her support to another aspiring head of his party on Friday.
She detailed all the work that awaits her to manage the arrival of the next President of the United States, Donald Trump. In particular, she must go to Washington next week for meetings. She had already gone to Florida at the end of December to meet people close to Mr. Trump.
“We must be ready for retaliatory measures” against the United States, she says, in reference to the president-elect’s desire to impose tariffs of 25% on Canadian imports.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Monday that he intends to resign from his post following a race for the leadership of his party. The identity of the next Liberal leader will be known on March 9.
This person will also become the next Prime Minister, but for a period which promises to be short if we are to believe the stated intention of all the opposition parties to bring down the minority Liberal government as soon as Parliament returns on March 24.
Ministers François-Philippe Champagne, Steven MacKinnon and Jonathan Wilkinson signaled their interest on Wednesday. The government House leader, Karina Gould, is also weighing the idea of running. Former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland is expected to enter the race, as are former Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney and former British Columbia Premier Christy Clark.
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