Is Canada's Justin Trudeau Resigning? What We Know

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is likely to announce his resignation in the coming days, reports say.

Newsweek contacted Trudeau's office for comment via email outside regular business hours.

Why It Matters

Canada's next election must take place by late October, and Trudeau's resignation could lead to calls for it to be held quickly to ensure a new government is in place to deal with the incoming U.S. administration, which is set to begin on January 20.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaking to donors during the Laurier Club Holiday Party at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Quebec, on December 16, 2024. Reports say Trudeau is likely to announce his... Dave Chan/AFP via Getty Images

What To Know

Trudeau has led Canada since 2015, but his popularity has waned in recent years over issues such as the high cost of living and rising inflation.

Members of his own Liberal Party have urged him to quit as polls show the ruling party will lose badly to the opposition Conservatives in the next election.

The abrupt resignation of Chrystia Freeland, Trudeau's finance minister who criticized his handling of the budget, in December led to renewed calls for the prime minister to step down.

Trudeau is expected to announce his resignation as leader of the Liberal Party as soon as Monday, The Globe and Mail reported, citing three unnamed sources.

The outlet said the sources did not know exactly when Trudeau would announce his plans but expected it would happen before a key national caucus meeting on Wednesday.

Reuters reported that Trudeau was increasingly likely to announce plans to step down, citing an unnamed source familiar with the prime minister's thinking. However, the outlet said no final decision had been made.

What People Are Saying

Trudeau said in a speech at the Liberals' holiday party in December: "It's hard not to feel happy when we're like this, with Liberals, among family. Because that's what we really are. A big family. Like most families, sometimes we have fights around the holidays. But of course, like most families, we find our way through it."

Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the opposition Conservative Party of Canada, commented in a December interview about the election possibly taking place during a Liberal leadership race: "The Canadian people are not obliged—41 million people are not obliged—to wait around while this party sorts out its s***. Like, these guys could have got rid of Trudeau a year and a half ago."

Elizabeth May, the leader of the Green Party of Canada, told reporters last week: "I think the prime minister obviously has to consider his role as leader of the Liberal Party, but I do think that's an internal question for Liberals … I think the resignation of Chrystia Freeland and the circumstances under which she was dismissed from his Cabinet right before the fall economic statement calls into question Justin Trudeau's judgment."

What Happens Next

If he resigns, it remains unclear whether Trudeau will leave office immediately or remain prime minister until the Liberal Party chooses a new leader.

Possible contenders, according to The Globe and Mail, include Freeland, Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, former housing minister Sean Fraser and Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly.

Trudeau's published schedule for Monday said only that he would participate virtually in a Cabinet committee meeting on Canada-U.S. relations.