Liberal leadership race: Mark Carney elected in a landslide

CBC News Chief Political Correspondent Rosemary Barton hosts special coverage as Mark Carney is chosen as the new Liberal leader and Canada’s next prime minister.

Carney will lead the party into a new era of Canadian politics.
The prime minister-designate blew his opponents out of the water with nearly 86 per cent of points awarded in the race.
In one of his final speeches as PM, Trudeau touched on his own legacy and the nation’s future.
CBC News is live now with special coverage.
11 minutes agoBenjamin Lopez Steven
Carney waved to the crowd after his speech. (Carlos Osorio/Pool/Reuters)
There’s been an electric atmosphere at the Rogers Centre tonight. Now that Carney is Liberal leader and prime minister-designate, here’s what comes next.
For starters, Trudeau needs to formally resign as prime minister and Carney needs to be sworn in by Gov. Gen. Mary Simon. He’ll also need to assemble a cabinet — and we’ll be watching to see who sticks around from Trudeau’s crew and whether the other leadership candidates will be offered positions.
It’s safe to assume there are transition plans in place between Trudeau and Carney. But the new Liberal leader will nevertheless need to hit the ground running as Canada stares down Trump and opposition parties prepare to bring down the government when it comes back from prorogation at the end of March.
Strap in, everyone. There’s still much more to come!
14 minutes agoMichael Woods
Carney’s victory speech was about half an hour. He hit many of the points we’ve heard him talk about during his leadership campaign: hockey analogies, emphasis on his economic bona fides and criticism of both Donald Trump and Pierre Poilievre.
He also paid tribute to Trudeau’s leadership while calling for “big changes, guided by strong Canadian values.”
Carney is not scheduled to scrum or hold a news conference with reporters tonight. CBC’s Ashley Burke had a microphone near him as he left the stage, but he smiled and kept walking.
22 minutes agoBenjamin Lopez Steven
Carney is seen during his first speech as prime minister-designate. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)
Carney is bullish on the future of the country. But he cautioned Liberal supporters that standing up to Trump “will take extraordinary efforts.”
“We will have to do things that we haven’t imagined before, at speeds we didn’t think possible,” Carney said.
“We will do it for the common good so that every Canadian benefits. I care about the economy, not because I am an economist, but because I care about people. That’s why I am a Liberal.”
25 minutes agoBenjamin Lopez Steven
We’re getting a clearer sense of how Carney wants to attack Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre ahead of an election. In Carney’s words, he understands the private sector — and Poilievre does not.
“[Poilievre] just doesn’t get it,” Carney said in his speech. “He’s that type of lifelong politician — and I have seen them around the world — who worships at the altar of the free market, despite never having made a payroll.”
“Unlike Pierre Poilievre, I have actually worked in the private sector. I know how the world works, and how it can be made to work better for us.”
Poilievre was first elected in 2004 as one the youngest MPs in the House of Commons. He represents the Ottawa-area riding now called Carleton.
27 minutes agoCatharine Tunney
Hey there, I’m a reporter with CBC’s Parliamentary Bureau. I’m at the convention tonight and reported on the leadership campaign for the last two months.
Carney, 59, pitched himself as an outsider seeking the top job, happily telling supporters that he is proudly not a politician.
“I’m not the usual suspect when it comes to politics, but this is no time for politics as usual,” he said during his campaign launch.
Even before he put his name in the running, Carney was seen as the one to beat. That continued throughout the campaign, with Carney the target of attacks from the Conservative Opposition long before tonight’s win.
29 minutes agoBenjamin Lopez Steven
Mark Carney jokes with a supporter at a watch party for the 4 Nations Face-Off hockey tournament’s Canada vs. USA game at a pub in Ottawa on Feb. 15, 2025. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)
Throughout his Liberal leadership campaign, Carney repeatedly used hockey metaphors to get his messages across. In his first speech as Liberal leader, he continued that trend.
“We didn’t ask for this fight,” Carney said, referencing Trump’s threats to annex Canada. “But Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves.”
“So Americans should make no mistake. In trade, as in hockey, Canada will win.”
35 minutes agoBenjamin Lopez Steven
The new Liberal leader, highlighting how he’s a “pragmatist,” said his government will “immediately eliminate the divisive consumer carbon tax” on families and farmers as well as small and medium-sized businesses.
It’s a pitch that attempts to cut right at the heart of Pierre Poilievre’s message. The Conservative leader has spent years blasting the carbon tax, and removing it was expected to be a cornerstone of the next Conservative federal election campaign.
Meanwhile, Carney said his government will keep Canada’s counter-tariffs on the United States “until the Americans show us respect and make credible, reliable commitments to free and fair trade.”
39 minutes agoMichael Woods
Freeland is seen during her introduction at Sunday’s convention. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press)
When new party leaders are chosen, they often make a point of including the second-place finisher to ensure party unity.
But Freeland got just eight per cent of the vote on the first ballot. It’s unclear what that means for her role in a Carney government (or whether she would even want one).
In his speech, Carney said the Liberal Party is united and ready to build a better country. The numbers bear that out.
Even the Carney camp was not expecting this big a win.
40 minutes agoRhianna Schmunk
How Mark Carney went from his upbringing in Alberta to central banker in tough economic times, and now leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and prime minister-designate.
Former banker, political newcomer, prime minister-designate.
Carney, who grew up in Alberta and steered the Bank of Canada through tough economic times, will take the nation’s highest office as his first job in politics. The video above is a look at his life.
42 minutes agoBenjamin Lopez Steven
Carney said that to the crowd of cheering supporters.
“My parents were teachers, and they stressed the importance of hard work, of community and of tolerance,” the new Liberal leader said.
“My [hockey] coaches were dedicated volunteers who taught me the importance of teamwork, ambition — and because it’s Canada — humility.”

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