Mark Carney, the former head of the UK and Canada central banks, will succeed Justin Trudeau as Canada’s Prime Minister.
Carney, 59, overwhelmingly won the race to lead the country’s federal Liberal party on Sunday after taking home 86% of the ballots, making him the first outsider with no real political background to become Canadian prime minister.
He beat out former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, former government house leader Karina Gould and former member of parliament Frank Baylis in a contest in which just under 152,000 party members voted.
“Who is ready to stand up for Canada with me?” Carney said in his acceptance speech.
“Yes Canada, the Liberal Party is united and strong and ready to fight to build an even better country.”
It’s not clear when Carney will formally assume office. He and Trudeau are expected to meet in the coming days to determine the outgoing prime minister’s final day at the helm.
The Wall Street wiz threw his hat in the race to succeed Trudeau in January, just a week after the incumbent announced he would resign before completing his term.
Carney has never run for elected office before, making him somewhat of a political novice. However, he has served in various roles within the Canadian government for more than a decade — most recently as Trudeau’s appointed chair of the Liberal Party of Canada’s Task Force on Economic Growth.
He previously served as the governor of the Bank of Canada before becoming the first non-Brit to run the Bank of England since it was founded in 1694.
Carney emphasized that his economic experience made him the best candidate to grapple with President Trump, who is threatening additional tariffs that would cripple Canada’s export-dependent economy.
During his campaign, Carney proposed dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs against the US, saying that Canada’s growth under Trudeau was not good enough.
In a teary-eyed farewell speech, Trudeau alluded to the tense relationship between Canada and the US that has emerged since Trump announced 25% tariffs on Canadian goods — and repeatedly threatened to make the country the 51st US state.
“These past ten years have been challenging. Crisis after crisis has been thrown at Canadians, but through every crisis, Canadians have shown who they are. We’ve pulled together, we’ve stood up for each other and every single time we’ve emerged even stronger,” Trudeau said to a roar of cheers.
“And now, as Canadians face — from our neighbor — an existential challenge, an economic crisis, Canadians are showing exactly what we are made of.”
Trudeau, who has served as prime minister since 2015, also said it was time for a new chapter in Canada’s future.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m damn proud of what we’ve done over these past 10 years, but tonight is about our future as a party, as a country,” he said before stepping down.
With Post Wires