By Janet H. Cho

New Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called for a snap election in late April as the country steels itself to respond to President Donald Trump's threatened tariffs and repeated calls for it to become the U.S.'s "51st state."

Carney was sworn in less than two weeks ago to succeed Justin Trudeau. He now faces a race against Conservative Party candidate Pierre Poilievre amid the growing trade war with the U.S.

Canadians will vote on April 28. The Liberals and the Conservatives aren't the only parties running, but they are front-runners. Whichever party wins the majority of the 343 seats in the House of Commons will form the next government, and its leader will be prime minister.

"I have just asked the Governor General to dissolve Parliament and call a federal election on April 28," Carney said on social media on Sunday. "We need to deal with President Trump's tariffs. Canadians deserve a choice about who should lead that effort for our country."

The governing Liberal party once appeared headed for defeat until Trudeau announced in January that he was resigning after a decade in office. Trump's tariffs on Canadian goods imported to the U.S. have angered Canadians and ignited their nationalism, which has strengthened Liberals in the polls. "Elbows Up Canada" rallies in Toronto on Saturday and in Ottawa earlier this month have drawn thousands.

Carney, 60, a former Goldman Sachs investment banker, was head of the Bank of Canada during the 2008 financial crisis and the first non-United Kingdom citizen to run the Bank of England, during Brexit.

"We are facing the most significant crisis of our lifetimes because of President Trump's unjustified trade actions and his threats to our sovereignty," Carney said in Ottawa on Sunday.

Poilievre, 45, is a two-decade veteran of Parliament who gained popularity in part because of Trudeau's Covid-19, environmental, and immigration policies. He said Sunday that "We must put Canada first and bring about a change." He has vowed to defund Canada's public broadcaster and won't let media onboard his campaign buses and planes.

Poilievre said Sunday that "Today, the Liberals are asking for a fourth term in power, after swapping Justin Trudeau for his economic advisor and hand-picked successor, Mark Carney. But after the lost liberal decade, the question is whether Canadians can afford a fourth Liberal term?"

He said he would stand up to Trump. "I will insist the president recognizes the independence and sovereignty of Canada. I will insist he stops tariffing our nation," he said. "I know a lot of people are worried, angry and anxious" about Trump's "unacceptable threats against our country," he said.

Gerald Butts, an informal Carney advisor and vice chairman of the Eurasia Group consulting firm, told The Wall Street Journal: "This election is definitely about one thing: Trump and the damage he's going to do to the economy."

Write to Janet H. Cho at janet.cho@dowjones.com

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March 23, 2025 15:00 ET (19:00 GMT)

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