2024–2025 Canadian political crisis
A political crisis emerged in Canada after Chrystia Freeland, the then-minister of finance and deputy prime minister, resigned from Cabinet on December 16, 2024. The events "sent shockwaves" through Canadian politics, leading to calls for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resign. On January 6, 2025, amid a mounting caucus revolt, Trudeau announced his resignation as leader of the Liberal Party and as the prime minister, pending the selection of his successor.
Freeland had been one of the most powerful and prominent figures in the Trudeau ministry and was considered among the prime minister's most loyal allies. Leading up to her resignation, their relationship had become increasingly strained over policy disagreements. On December 13, Trudeau told Freeland that he no longer wished to see her continue as Finance minister, but asked her to stay in Cabinet. Freeland mulled the offer over the subsequent days, but ultimately opted to resign. She published the resignation letter, which was heavily critical of Trudeau.
Freeland's resignation precipitated an escalating loss of political support for Trudeau. Leaders of the opposition parties immediately demanded his resignation. A growing number of Liberal MPs did the same in the days afterwards. The New Democratic Party, which had been in a confidence and supply agreement with the Liberals between March 2022 and September 2024, and whose support had been integral in defeating motions of no confidence against the government even after their withdrawal from the agreement, announced that they would vote to bring down the government when Parliament returned from its winter break.
When Trudeau eventually resigned, he concurrently announced the prorogation of Parliament until March. This decision would be subject to a legal challenge, but was upheld. The subsequent leadership election was won by Mark Carney, who was sworn in as Prime Minister on March 14 and announced the dissolution of Parliament nine days later. He led the Liberals to victory in the ensuing election, overturning a large deficit in opinion polling.
Background
Chrystia Freeland had been a member of Trudeau's government since he took office in 2015 and served in several key roles. In 2019, she was appointed deputy prime minister, and in 2020, she took the role of finance minister. Her prominence in the Trudeau government, and being tasked with critical files, often led her to being nicknamed the "minister of everything", and she was widely seen as a potential successor to Trudeau for the leadership of the Liberal Party. Freeland was also seen as exceptionally loyal to Trudeau.Trudeau had, by then, been in power for nine years following his 2015 election victory. Trudeau had been reduced to a minority government in both the 2019 and 2021 elections. A confidence and supply agreement with the opposition NDP helped sustain the minority government from March 2022 until September 2024, when the NDP withdrew from the agreement. Trudeau had headed off a caucus revolt in October 2024 over concerns about his unpopularity amid Canada's cost-of-living crisis and rising Conservative poll numbers.
In the weeks leading up to Freeland's resignation, two other sudden departures from Trudeau's cabinet occurred. On November 20, 2024, Alberta MP Randy Boissonnault resigned from the Cabinet following allegations that he ran a business seeking federal contracts and falsely claimed to be Indigenous. On December 15, 2024, housing minister Sean Fraser announced his intention to leave the cabinet, citing family reasons.
Resignation of Chrystia Freeland
On December 13, 2024, Trudeau informed Freeland in a Zoom call that he no longer wished to see her continue as finance minister. According to multiple sources, including The Globe and Mail and the Financial Post, Trudeau informed her that she would be replaced by Mark Carney; the latter also reported that Carney had accepted the offer. This development came after a months-long campaign by Trudeau to recruit Carney to the government. On the call, Trudeau indicated his wish for Freeland to remain in cabinet, and offered her a portfolio managing Canada's fraught relations with the US under the second Trump administration, but without a department. Freeland reportedly expressed her displeasure at the offer, telling Trudeau she could not credibly manage the file without a department. Freeland and her staff spent the weekend mulling her response. Meanwhile, Carney himself reportedly began having second thoughts about the offer over the same period.On Monday morning, December 16, Freeland called Trudeau and informed him of her decision to resign from cabinet altogether. She subsequently shared her resignation letter on Twitter at 9:07 AM. In the letter, she stated, "to be effective, a Minister must speak on behalf of the Prime Minister and with his full confidence. In making your decision, you made clear that I no longer credibly enjoy that confidence." Freeland's letter was described as being scathing in tone by multiple outlets, and publicized her recent disagreements with the prime minister. On the same day, after Freeland's resignation, Carney reportedly spoke directly with Trudeau and informed him that he would not join cabinet.
Freeland's resignation occurred in the context of the incoming second Trump administration in the United States threatening to impose 25 per cent tariffs upon Canada, with Freeland writing to Trudeau that Canada faces a grave challenge due to this. The previous week, reports had circulated about a rift between the prime minister and deputy prime minister, with Freeland opposing Trudeau's recent promise of $250 cheques to working Canadians who earned $150,000 or less in 2023. In her letter, Freeland referred to the proposal as a "costly political gimmick" and argued that the Canadian government should " our fiscal powder dry today, so we have the reserves we may need for a coming tariff war."
Freeland resigned hours before she was to announce the government's fall economic statement. Government house leader Karina Gould presented it in the House of Commons later that day. The statement showed a deficit of $61.9 billion for 2023–24, exceeding Freeland's target of $40.1 billion or less, and left Trump's tariff threats largely unaddressed.
Freeland, at the time, was located in the city of Prince George, British Columbia.
Loss of support for Justin Trudeau
Freeland's resignation was seen as a "clear rebuke" of Trudeau, with immediate speculation arising as to the future of his leadership. Trudeau faced calls to resign from both the opposition and his caucus, while polls indicated unpopularity for both the move and his government as a whole.Liberal Party
At a speech at a Liberal fundraiser on the evening of Freeland's resignation, Trudeau remarked, "it was an eventful day, not an easy day." Sources reported Trudeau was considering proroguing Parliament or resigning. Ontario Liberal MP Chad Collins stated that the Liberal caucus was "not united" on the issue of Trudeau's continued leadership of the party, and said he believes "the only path forward for us is to choose a new leader, and to present a new plan to Canadians with a different vision," while Quebec Liberal MP Anthony Housefather said he believes "the prime minister has passed shelf life" and should resign. Fellow Ontario MP Helena Jaczek agreed with Housefather and said that Trudeau "just doesn't represent what I want to see in a leader", while New Brunswick MP Wayne Long called Freeland's decision to leave cabinet "bold" and "a devastating blow" for the Prime Minister that should convince him to resign.At a caucus meeting earlier that day, it was reported that Liberal MPs gave Freeland a standing ovation. British Columbia MP Rob Morrison shared hopes for a prorogued parliament, followed by a leadership review and general election. Ontario MP Judy Sgro told caucus colleagues, “I continue to believe that early in the New Year a plan moving forward will be announced including his resignation and we will be consumed with new challenges”. Concerning the possibility of Trudeau's resignation, Ontario MP and Deputy House Leader Mark Gerretsen said “It’s really difficult for him to come to any other conclusion at this point”, and said most of his riding's constituents wanted Trudeau to resign.
Several other Liberal MPs called on Trudeau to resign, including Alberta MP George Chahal, British Columbia MPs Ken Hardie, Parm Bains, and Patrick Weiler, Manitoba MP Ben Carr, New Brunswick MPs René Arseneault, Jenica Atwin, and Serge Cormier, Newfoundland and Labrador MP Ken MacDonald, Ontario MPs Chandra Arya, Yvan Baker, Valerie Bradford, Francis Drouin, Ali Ehsassi, Peter Fragiskatos, and Rob Oliphant, Prince Edward Island MPs Sean Casey and Heath MacDonald, Quebec MPs Sophie Chatel and Alexandra Mendès, and Yukon MP Brendan Hanley. Ontario Liberal MP James Maloney, on the other hand, told reporters that Trudeau retained the confidence of the caucus, while chief government whip Ruby Sahota said Trudeau still had her "full support".
Newfoundland and Labrador MP Joanne Thompson also expressed her support for Trudeau, saying that it was "not the time for to fracture" in the face of the 25% tariffs, while Newfoundland and Labrador MP Churence Rogers announced he would not seek re-election but still supported Trudeau, claiming his decision not to seek re-election was separate from the "turmoil" in the caucus. Nova Scotia MP Jaime Battiste said he would continue to support Trudeau in 2025, with the reason being that the two are ideologically similar on protecting the environment, while Ontario MP Marcus Powlowski said that despite backing the Prime Minister, Powlowski accepted that Trudeau could not win the next general election as party leader and should prorogue parliament in order for a leadership race to occur.
By December 21, the number of Liberal MPs publicly calling for Trudeau's resignation was 21, while it was reported that 50 Liberal MPs – roughly one-third of the Liberal caucus – privately wanted Trudeau to resign. Chandra Arya commented that Freeland "appears to be the person around whom the caucus members can rally behind", adding that Freeland represents a "viable and reassuring alternative" to Trudeau. When asked, Sean Casey said he would like to see Freeland launch a leadership bid.
On December 21, the Ontario Liberal caucus held a virtual meeting where 51 of the province's 75 Liberal MPs came to a consensus that Trudeau should resign. Freeland herself, as an Ontario Liberal MP, was reportedly on that call, but said nothing as the issue was debated. On December 23, the Atlantic Liberal caucus was revealed to be meeting over Trudeau's political future. On December 29, the caucus and its chair, Nova Scotia MP Kody Blois, called on Trudeau to resign. On December 30, the Quebec Liberal caucus called on Trudeau to resign.