Votes were being counted Monday in a Canadian election that will choose a leader to confront Donald Trump’s trade war and annexation threats, which the US president renewed in an election day message.
The Liberal Party, led by new Prime Minister Mark Carney, was trailing Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives until Trump’s attacks on Canada sparked a wave of patriotism and a sudden reversal in poll forecasts.
Polling stations across the vast country that spans six time zones have started to close, with results from smaller eastern provinces trickling in.
Voting was ongoing across much of Canada, and a projected outcome is not expected until later on Monday.
Trump inserted himself into the race early in the day with a social media post saying Canada would face “ZERO TARIFFS” if it “becomes the cherished 51st state.”
Poilievre, criticized during the campaign for his at-times muted anger towards Trump, hit back firmly.
“President Trump, stay out of our election,” he posted on X. “Canada will always be proud, sovereign, and independent, and we will NEVER be the 51st state.”
Carney also weighed in, saying on X: “This is Canada, and we have decided what happens here.”
The 60-year-old has never held elected office and only replaced Justin Trudeau as prime minister last month.
A hockey player in his youth, Carney had a lucrative career as an investment banker before serving as the central bank governor in both Canada and Britain.
- When do polls close? Polling hours vary across Canada’s six time zones, although most polls are coordinated to close at 9:30 p.m. EDT, which coincides with Eastern Daylight Time in the U.S. Polls in the Newfoundland Time Zone in the east and the Pacific Time Zone in the west close at 10 p.m. EDT. Some electoral districts span more than one time zone.
- What’s on the ballot? Voters will elect their local representative to the House of Commons. No other contests will appear on the ballot. Voters do not directly cast ballots for the Prime Minister.
- When and where are results available? Elections Canada says it expects to count the “vast majority” of ballots on election night. Each polling place counts its election day vote by hand after polls close and reports the results to the district’s local Elections Canada office, which then posts the results on the Elections Canada website. Results are also released directly to Canadian news organizations.
Canadians to decide whether to extend the Liberal Party’s decade in power or hand control to the Conservatives. They’ll pick new Prime Minister Mark Carney or populist opposition leader Pierre Poilievre, but the election is also a referendum of sorts on someone who isn’t even Canadian: Donald Trump.
The country is also grappling with the aftermath of a fatal car ramming attack on Saturday in Vancouver. The tragedy prompted the suspension of campaigning for several hours. Police ruled out terrorism and said the suspect is a local man with a history of mental health issues.
Paper ballots only
Elections Canada has said it’s sticking with paper ballots — which are hand counted — for these federal elections.
Candidates may appoint representatives to oversee the count. Results from polling stations are reported to Elections Canada, which releases them online.
Results typically trickle out as polls close, since ballot boxes themselves aren’t relocated to centralized places for counting.
Poillievre
Poilievre, a 45-year-old career politician, tried to keep the focus on domestic concerns that made Trudeau deeply unpopular toward the end of his decade in power.
The Tory leader argued Carney would continue “the lost Liberal decade” and that only the Conservatives will act against soaring costs, housing shortages and other non-Trump issues that Canadians rank as priorities.
Ya Libnan /AFP/AP