Democracy is a crucial process that aims to represent the interests of a nation’s citizens in government, forming the foundation of many world powers across the globe. Among these are the United States and Canada, which both incorporate voting into the political process. While the U.S. election occurred back in November 2024, Canada more recently held their election in which the liberals, led by Mark Carney, won the Canada election for Parliament on April 28. Beating the conservative party, headed by Pierre Poilievre, and marking the fourth liberal success in a row, Carney now seeks to usher in an era of unification.
As a Harvard and Oxford graduate, as well as a previous governor of the Bank of Canada and Bank of England, the new prime minister’s educational background is vast. However, Carney has never held a political office before, strongly contrasting his opponent Poilievre, who coined a slogan of “Canada First” and was deemed a “career politician” by the Associated Press.
Unlike the constitutional limits on the number of a U.S. president’s terms, Canada does not have any restrictions on the serving period of the prime minister, as long as the House of Commons approves and elections occur at least every five years. In this case, the election cycle began when former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stepped down from his role. However, instead of the potential head candidates facing off, the process differs from that of the United States.
As explained by The New York Times, “The party that wins the most seats in Parliament typically forms a government, and its leader becomes the prime minister.” In the case of the 2025 election, the conservatives appeared to be in the lead in the days approaching poll openings. However, Canada began to turn in Carney’s favor when U.S. President Donald Trump made statements about annexing the country as the 51st state and began a trade war against the previous ally.
Suddenly, citizens began to turn away from Poilievre, who they found to resemble Trump’s beliefs and actions. “Canada First” was reminiscent of “America First,” and the conservative candidate’s standpoints on immigration, government size, and more fell into similarities with Trump’s views. Instead, support grew for Carney, who made a public stand against Trump. This position eventually resulted in a liberal victory, with the new prime minister settling into his role as Canada’s leader.
Carney’s opinions and beliefs include a focus on economic growth, increased sustainability and environmental awareness, and capping immigration targets. At the top of these issues is protection against Trump’s tariffs and annexation threats. In response to the president’s actions, Carney has made efforts to expand trade to other countries, in order to maintain a stable economy in the face of tension with the U.S. Additionally, he has vowed to keep retaliatory tariffs in place, an effort which he deems necessary, but not immensely extensive or effective.
After being elected to office, Carney’s speech contained a rallying cry against Trump’s efforts. He highlighted the importance of unity and speaking out against oppression, with National Public Radio (NPR) citing his statement that “‘America wants [their] land, [their] resources, [their] water, [their] country’” and they will ensure “‘that will never … ever happen.’”