Trudeau announces intention to resign as Canadian PM – World

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Monday his intention to resign as prime minister and leader of his party.

He said he would remain in his position until the ruling Liberal Party chose a replacement for him.

Trudeau made his comments in a live address.

Trudeau’s popularity has declined in recent months, with his government narrowly surviving a series of no-confidence votes and critics calling for his resignation.

He has vowed to stay to lead the Liberals into elections scheduled for October 2025, but has faced increased pressure from incoming U.S. President Donald Trump, who has threatened a 25 percent tariff on Canadian goods.

Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland resigned in December after disagreeing with Trudeau over how to respond to Trump’s apparent plan, in the first open disagreement against the prime minister within his cabinet.

Later that month, Trudeau announced a major shake-up of his cabinet – changing a third of his team in a bid to resolve the political turmoil. In November, he traveled to Florida to meet with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate in an attempt to avoid a trade war.

But since then, the president-elect has also dealt humiliating blows against Trudeau on social media, repeatedly calling him the “governor” of Canada and declaring that turning the United States’ northern neighbor into America’s 51st state is a “great idea.” ”.

Trudeau came to power in 2015, with a mop of dark, curly hair and a confident swagger, and led the Liberals to two more victories at the polls in 2019 and 2021.

But he is now 20 points behind his main rival, conservative Pierre Poilievre, in public opinion polls.

Trudeau, a latecomer to politics after working as a snowboard instructor, bartender, bouncer and teacher, was first elected in 2008 to the House of Commons to represent a working-class Montreal neighborhood.

In his first two terms as prime minister, he pushed reforms through the Senate, signed a new trade deal with the United States and introduced a carbon tax to reduce Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions.

The married father of three also legalized cannabis, held a public inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and passed legislation allowing medically assisted suicide.



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