Canadian PM Mark Carney calls snap general election for April 28 amid Donald Trump's annexation and tariff threats

Mark Carney took over as the prime minister on March 15, succeeding Justin Trudeau who quit in January

Canada's prime minister Mark Carney on Sunday called a snap general election for April 28, saying he needed a “strong mandate” to deal with the threat posed by US President Donald Trump's tariff on the country's economy.

The general election is not due until October 20, but Carney is hoping to capitalise on arecovery by his Liberal party in the polls since January, when Trump began threatening Canada.

Trump has repeatedly dismissed Canada's sovereignty and borders as “artificial”, and urged it to join the United States as the 51st state.

Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney announces a federal election, after his meeting at Rideau Hall with Governor General Mary Simon to dissolve parliament, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada March 23, 2025. (Reuters)

"We are facing the most significant crisis of our lifetimes because of President Trump's unjustified trade actions and his threats to our sovereignty," Reuters quoted Carney as saying.

"There is so much more to do to secure Canada. To invest in Canada, to build Canada, to unite Canada. That's why I'm asking for a strong positive mandate from my fellow Canadians. I've just requested that the Governor General dissolve Parliament and call an election for April 28th, and she has agreed," Carney said after Governor General, the personal representative of King Charles, Canada's head of state, approved his request for an election.

Carney took over as the prime minister on March 15, succeeding Justin Trudeau who quit in January, but remained in power until the Liberal Party elected a new leader on March 9.

Opinion polls suggest the Liberals, who have been in power since 2015 and badly trailed the official opposition Conservatives at the start of the year, are now slightly ahead of their rivals.

“We moved from an election where people wanted change to an election that's really much more about leadership,” Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs, told Reuters.

"The ability of the Conservatives to attack the Liberals has been greatly diminished, because people are focused on the here and now and the near term future, not on what happened over the last 10 years," he added.

Opposition Conservatives seeking to portray Carney as ‘elitist’

According to a Reuters report, the Conservatives are seeking to portray the new premier as an “elitist” who plans to continue the Trudeau-era policy of high government spending. They also accuse him of being less than clear about how he transferred his personal financial assets into a blind trust.

Carney bristled last week when asked about the trust, and accused the reporter asking of engaging in "conflict and ill will". The prickly reaction could give hope to the Conservatives that Carney might stumble during what will be his first campaign.