Canada, Trump, and the Liberals

March 10th, 2025

Lindsey Zhao

President Trump’s return to the White House in the United States has, in recent weeks, also been accompanied by a wave of patriotism in…Canada. His on-and-off threats to institute a 25% tariff on all Canadian goods entering the US has made Canadians extremely worried, because over 3/4 of all Canadian goods are shipped to their southern neighbor, and threats to annex Canada have understandably concerned them as well. Now, not only are Canadians boycotting American-made goods in grocery stores and malls, but their anxieties have completely reversed recent political trends in the country of 40 million people.

Prior to President Trump’s return to office, the incumbent Liberal Party seemed doomed to lose upcoming elections. Their leader and current Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, had announced his resignation from the office he has held since 2014, and public approval of the job Liberals were doing managing jobs and the economy was dismal at best. In December, they were polling at just 16% support. In contrast, the Conservatives, the main opposition party and led by Pierre Poilievre, seemed on the ascendancy because they led on major issues like repealing the carbon tax, lowering the cost of living, and more.

Now, Canadian politics seem to solely revolve around which party—and PM candidate—is best suited to lead Canada through the trade war with the United States and dealing with an unpredictable Trump. Pierre Poilievre has adopted a new slogan, Canada First, and emphasized that under his leadership, Canada would not back down.

Surprisingly, President Trump’s actions and remarks (along with Trudeau’s resignation) have also brought back the Liberals from the brink of electoral disaster, now polling over 10 points higher than they were when Trudeau announced his resignation. In fact, for the first time since 2021, one poll showed the Liberals ahead of the Conservatives (AKA Tories).

This has also revitalized interest in the Liberals’ leadership contest, held to determine which party politician will replace Trudeau as Prime Minister of Canada. Predictably, this contest centered around Trump as well. Earlier on Sunday evening, Mark Carney, an experienced central banker who guided Canada through the 2008 financial crisis, beat three other Liberal party candidates by a landslide to earn the position. Although he has never held elected office, he campaigned on his past economic experience to convince voters he was the best person to guide Canada through its trade war with Trump.

Of course, Carney is not guaranteed to hold the PM position for more than a few weeks, because he will almost be immediately pressured to hold snap elections for Prime Minister. Nevertheless, the odds that Carney remains in office as Prime Minister seem to be improving by the day. It will ultimately be up to the Liberals as to how they continue their political momentum.