Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation as leader of the Liberal Party.
“I intend to resign as party leader, as prime minister, after the party selects its next leader through a robust nationwide, competitive process,” he said during a press conference. “Last night I asked the president of the Liberal Party to begin that process. 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.”
Kody Blois, the chair of the Atlantic Caucus, urged Trudeau to resign. “Time is of the essence, and our Caucus is of the view that it is not tenable for you to remain as the Leader, and that we need to allow for the necessary conversations on transition to take place,” he wrote.
A January 3 poll showed that support for the Liberals with Trudeau as its leader dropped to 13 percent. The poll further noted that Trudeau had a 59% disapproval rating.
Last month, Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland stepped down.
“For the past number of weeks, you and I have found ourselves at odds about the best path forward for Canada,” she wrote to Trudeau, adding, “Our country is facing a grave challenge. That means keeping our fiscal powder dry today, so we have the reserves we may need for a coming tariff war.”
President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 25% tariff on all goods entering the U.S. from Canada unless “drugs, in particular fentanyl, and all illegal aliens stop this invasion of our country.”
