Canada’s Liberals Win Minority Government; Carney Says Old Relationship with US ‘Is Over’

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's Liberals retained power in the country's election on Monday, but fell short of the majority government he had wanted to help him negotiate tariffs with US President Donald Trump.

The Liberals were leading or elected in 167 electoral districts, known as seats, followed by the Conservatives with 145, with votes still being counted.

The Liberals had needed to win 172 of the House of Commons' 343 seats for a majority that would allow them to govern without support from a smaller party.

"Our old relationship with the United States, a relationship based on steadily increasing integration, is over," Carney said in a victory speech in Ottawa.

"The system of open global trade anchored by the United States, a system that Canada has relied on since the Second World War, a system that, while not perfect, has helped deliver prosperity for our country for decades, is over," he added. "These are tragedies, but it's also our new reality."

Carney said the coming months would be challenging and require sacrifices.

Shachi Kurl, president of the Angus Reid Institute, a polling firm, told Reuters the Liberal win hinged on three factors.

"It was the 'anybody-but-Conservative' factor, it was the Trump tariff factor, and then it was the Trudeau departure ... which enabled a lot of left-of-center voters and traditional Liberal voters to come back to the party," Kurl said, referring to the resignation of unpopular former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Carney had promised a tough approach with Washington over its import tariffs and said Canada would need to spend billions to reduce its reliance on the US. But the right-of-center Conservatives, who called for change after more than nine years of Liberal rule, showed unexpected strength.

Minority governments in Canada rarely last longer than 2-1/2 years.

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre conceded defeat to Carney's Liberals and said his party would hold the government to account.

The result capped a notable comeback for the Liberals, who had been 20 percentage points behind in the polls in January before Trudeau announced he was quitting and Trump started threatening tariffs and annexation.

"America wants our land, our resources, our water, our country," Carney said. "These are not idle threats. President Trump is trying to break us so America can own us. That will never ever happen."

WAVE OF PATRIOTISM

Trump's threats ignited a wave of patriotism that swelled support for Carney, a political newcomer who previously led two G7 central banks.

Trump re-emerged as a campaign factor last week, declaring that he might raise a 25% tariff on Canadian-made cars because the US does not want them. He said earlier he might use "economic force" to make Canada the 51st state.

Carney has emphasized that his experience handling economic issues makes him the best leader to deal with Trump, while Poilievre tapped into concerns about the cost of living, crime and a housing crisis.

Trump, in a social media post on Monday, reiterated his call for Canada to become the 51st state.

"Good luck to the Great people of Canada," he said. "Elect the man who has the strength and wisdom to cut your taxes in half, increase your military power, for free, to the highest level in the World, have your Car, Steel, Aluminum, Lumber, Energy, and all other businesses, QUADRUPLE in size, WITH ZERO TARIFFS OR TAXES, if Canada becomes the cherished 51st State of the United States of America. No more artificially drawn line from many years ago."

Tensions with the US have caused supporters of two smaller parties, the left-leaning New Democratic Party and the separatist Bloc Quebecois, to shift to the Liberals. NDP leader Jagmeet Singh conceded defeat in his own district and said he planned to quit as party leader.

The Conservatives appeared on track to make gains in the seat-rich Toronto area to prevent a Liberal majority government, but Poilievre was trailing in his own Ottawa-area district, with votes still being counted.

"We didn't quite get over the finish line yet," Poilievre told his supporters in Ottawa. "We know that change is needed, but change is hard to come by. It takes time."

The Liberals are the last party to win four consecutive elections in Canada, accomplishing the feat in 2004.

Poilievre focused his campaign on domestic issues and the need to fix a country that he said the Liberals had "broken."

The State Department is pulling back from commenting on or criticizing elections overseas unless there is a clear and compelling US foreign policy interest in doing so.

In new guidance issued Thursday to all US embassies and consulates abroad, the department said that those outposts should refrain from issuing statements that invoke any particular ideology and that what they may say must be in line with President Donald Trump’s stated position that the US will respect the sovereignty of all foreign nations.

“Consistent with the administration’s emphasis on national sovereignty, the department will comment publicly on elections only when there is a clear and compelling US foreign policy interest to do so,” according to the cable, a copy of which was shared with The Associated Press.

The department has for decades issued statements highly critical of or questioning the legitimacy of certain elections, notably in authoritarian countries. That is changing as the Trump administration has emphasized an “America First” foreign policy approach centered on US interests.

“When it is appropriate to comment on a foreign election, our message should be brief, focused on congratulating the winning candidate, and, when appropriate, noting shared foreign policy interests,” the cable said.

The document, which was signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and first reported by the Wall Street Journal, said “messages should avoid opining on the fairness or integrity of an electoral process, its legitimacy or the democratic values of the country in question.”

In the past, US commentary questioning or criticizing elections aboard often has come in support of findings from various election monitoring groups, such as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe or US-based institutions such as the Carter Center, the National Democratic Institute and International Republican Institute.

The department cable said that amplifying the findings of outside groups or denouncing electoral irregularities can only be done with permission from senior officials in Washington.

Canada’s Liberals Win Minority Government; Carney Says Old Relationship with US ‘Is Over’