Carney seeks majority mandate to deal with tariffs in ‘consequential’ election

OTTAWA – Liberal Leader Mark Carney said this week his government needs to win a majority and a strong mandate to pursue negotiations with the U.S. and take on “the biggest crisis in our lifetimes.”

At an election campaign rally in Kitchener, Ont., on Wednesday — which was interrupted several times by hecklers — Carney said the election will be “consequential” and that “we need a majority because we need big changes.”

Asked by reporters Thursday if he was showing excessive confidence, Carney said “the government is going to need to act.”

“The stronger the mandate is, the more effective we are going to be getting the best deal for Canada with respect to the Americans,” he said.

Carney was expected to head to Montreal for a rally Thursday evening after he stepped off the campaign trail for the morning to huddle with cabinet ministers in Ottawa following a new barrage of tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Carney was expected to campaign in Quebec for the first time Thursday morning, but those plans were delayed by Trump’s new auto tariffs.

Trump’s tariff moves and his calls to annex Canada have become major issues in this election campaign — and have helped drive some voters to Carney’s Liberal camp.

Carney said Trump’s office reached out Wednesday night to schedule a call with him, adding it will take place within days. The prime minister said he appreciates the opportunity to speak with Trump and will emphasize the need for co-operation and mutual respect between the two countries.

Speaking to reporters, Carney said the call was only the start of negotiations and that he is also calling a meeting with Canada’s premiers on Friday.

The Liberal leader was welcomed by a crowd chanting “Carney!” at a rally in Montreal Thursday evening.

He was joined by dozens of candidates, including survivor of the 1989 École Polytechnique massacre and gun-control advocate Natalie Provost, former immigration minister Marc Miller, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly and Minister of Canadian Culture and Identity Steven Guilbeault.

The rally took on a patriotic flavour amid Trump’s tariff threats, with many of the people gathered holding mini Canadian flags and signs with the Canadian flag. 

When one attendee yelled “elbows up,” Carney said “we’re gonna have them up for a long time.”

Trump’s tariffs and threats against Canadian sovereignty, coupled with the departure of former prime minister Justin Trudeau, have led the Liberals to a sharp rebound in the polls in recent weeks.

Most pollsters now have the Liberals ahead of the Conservatives.

Earlier this week Angus Reid published a poll suggesting the Liberals had opened up an eight-point lead over the Conservatives in national polling, after trailing them by nearly 30 points at the end of December.

In a new survey published Thursday Angus Reid did a dive into why that has happened, finding more than half of those who switched their vote to the Liberals since the beginning of the year did so because Carney is now the leader.

Almost as many said it was because of Trump’s stance toward Canada.

Mona Fortier, former cabinet minister and incumbent Liberal candidate for Ottawa-Vanier-Gloucester, told The Canadian Press that volunteers and constituents she has met while door-knocking are engaged and feel a strong sense of national unity in the face of Trump’s threats. 

“It was just interesting to see how the conversation was about, ‘We need to stand up for Canada,’ and that’s how we will stand up is with this election and give a clear mandate to make sure that we tell Trump that we have a prime minister and a team that will fight for Canada,” Fortier said.

Despite the turnaround in the polls, Fortier said candidates need to be on the ground, knocking on doors.

“We cannot take this election for granted at all,” she said.

-with files from Catherine Morrison and Anja Karadeglija

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2025.