Mark Carney, one of the world’s most prominent central bankers and an evangelist for green investing, announced Thursday that he will run for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada and the next prime minister. If he wins, he will lead the party into this year’s national elections.
“I’m here to ask for your support,” Carney, 59, announced his candidacy in Edmonton, Alberta. “I’m here to earn your trust.”
Carney also said the country faces big challenges and is ready to tackle them. “Canadians of my generation are lucky,” he says. “We had good times. Times of prosperity. The system our parents built worked for us. But those good old days are gone, folks. Ours will never be normal. Not.”
Canadian politics has been in turmoil since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced this month that he would step down after nearly a decade in power as his once-starring global profile steadily declined.
Mr. Trudeau will leave a dangerous legacy for his successor as leader of the Liberal Party. The party is in tatters as voters grow increasingly disillusioned with the direction of the country, with recent opinion polls showing the opposition Conservative Party leading the Liberals by more than 25 points.
Mr. Carney, who served as Mr. Trudeau’s unofficial economic adviser during the pandemic, has portrayed himself as an outsider and distanced himself from Mr. Trudeau’s recent policy battles, including rising housing costs, a strained health care system and high-quality health care. I’m trying to put prices of daily necessities.
Mr. Carney is likely to lead the central banks of Canada and the United Kingdom and use his economic acumen as a world heavyweight as President-elect Donald J. Trump threatens to impose 25% tariffs on all Americans. . Canadian products exported to the United States.
Such a sweeping move would not only destroy Canada’s economy, it would also damage the United States. (Trump has also hinted at tariffs on Mexico).
But it remains to be seen whether Mr. Carney will be able to convince voters that he has no role in Mr. Trudeau’s management of the country. Even before Mr. Carney officially announced his candidacy, the Conservative Party was quick to point out the relationship between Mr. Carney and Mr. Trudeau.
Conservative leader Pierre Poièvre called him “the ultimate liberal insider” and “just like Justin.” photograph X posted a photo of Mr. Carney and Mr. Trudeau sitting close together, smiling and adding, “The bond between these two is touching.”
Liberal Party leadership candidates will launch a campaign to persuade party members before the March vote. Once a new leader takes office, Mr. Trudeau will formally resign and the new leader will also become prime minister. A general election is then expected to be held, probably in the spring.
Mr. Carney has never run for office, but he needs to overcome the perception among Canadians that he is an uptight bureaucrat, a member of the world’s elite, and antisocial. there will be. He was born in the Northwest Territories but grew up in Edmonton.
This week, he challenged himself to overhaul his image in a coy but humorous effort. interview He joked with late-night host Jon Stewart for about 20 minutes on “The Daily Show.”
The conversation centered around jokes about Canada-U.S. relations. Trump has infuriated many Canadians by saying he wants to effectively annex Canada and turn it into a separate state.
“We’re not going to live with you,” Carney said. “We can be friends,” he added. “Friends with benefits.”
Stewart later responded: “The whole interview, I feel like you’re trying to break up with me.”
Carney seemed more relaxed as the interview progressed, and followed up by saying, “We’re resetting our relationship and we’re going to come out stronger.”
He also used Mr. Stewart’s show as a stage to send a telegram that he was in no way an official member of Mr. Trudeau’s beleaguered government.
“I’m an outsider,” Carney said.
On Thursday, Mr. Carney formally made his pitch to Liberal voters on how he would lead Canada through a likely turbulent relationship with the United States and various domestic challenges.
Mr. Carney served as Governor of the Bank of Canada from 2008 to 2013 and then led the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020. At the Bank of England, he was particularly known for his speeches, which sometimes veered into political themes. The dangers climate change poses to global markets.
Since then, he has served as special envoy for climate action and finance at the United Nations. As Chairman of the Bloomberg Board of Directors. He most recently served as Chairman of Brookfield Asset Management, a global investment firm headquartered in Toronto.
One potential challenge Mr. Carney could face for Liberal leadership is Chrystia Freeland, who abruptly resigned as deputy prime minister last month and criticized Mr. Trudeau’s management of the country.
Trudeau’s government had pursued Mr. Carney to replace Mr. Freeland, but Mr. Carney refused.
Mr. Freeland has close ties to Mr. Carney and their educational backgrounds are similar, with both being graduates of Harvard University and Oxford University. They are also friends, and Mr. Carney is also the godfather of one of Mr. Freeland’s children.
Of the two, Mr. Carney is the lesser known to Canadians. As a recent opinion public opinion poll24% of Canadians recognized Mr. Carney in the photo, and 51% recognized Mr. Freeland.
The Liberal Party’s efforts to change the leadership are attracting attention. We recently updated our voter eligibility to include only Canadian citizens and permanent residents aged 14 and over. Registration had previously been open to all Canadian residents of any nationality, but there were growing concerns that voting could be susceptible to foreign interference.
A security task force comprised of members of the Canadian Federal Police, the Department of International Affairs and the intelligence community. Prime Minister Trudeau’s office said national agencies will monitor the leadership contest to ensure its legitimacy.
Candidates need to raise 350,000 Canadian dollars, or about $245,000, to enter the race.
