Canadians re-elect Justin Trudeau in pandemic election, but deny him a coveted majority
- Parliament will be virtually unchanged, with Trudeau’s Liberals leading in 156 electorates and the opposition Conservatives leading in 121
- The campaign was roiled by claims of Chinese interference and protests by activists angered by pandemic measures
Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will form a new government after securing the most seats in Monday’s election, but he failed in his gamble that his handling of the Covid-19 pandemic would see him rewarded with a coveted majority.
Instead, Trudeau’s Liberal Party is headed for minority status again, and is set to continue to rely on the support of the left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP) to hold power.
The Liberals were leading in 156 ridings, the Conservatives in 121, the Quebec-based Bloc Québécois in 32, the NDP in 27 and the Greens in two. That would leave the House of Commons virtually unchanged.
Trudeau had started the campaign last month with a clear lead in the polls, but his support shrivelled and the election evolved into a narrow race with Conservative opposition leader Erin O’Toole.
More than 1.2 million electors chose to vote by mail or special ballot, likely delaying the full outcome.
Trudeau, 49, delivered a relatively subdued speech after his third election victory, speaking to about 250 supporters at Liberal headquarters in Montreal, their numbers restricted by pandemic rules.
Despite minority status, he called it a “clear mandate to end this pandemic once and for all”.
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“Some have talked about division but that is not what I see,” he said, adding “there is no greater honour than serving you and serving this country”.
O’Toole, meanwhile, delivered a concession speech that sounded more like he was launching a campaign than ending one.
“Mr Trudeau was hoping for a quick power grab. Instead, he has thrust us … into 18 months of perpetual campaigning,” O’Toole said, referring to Trudeau’s suggestion in a debate that he might seek another election in 2023 if denied a majority.
“If he [Trudeau] thinks he can threaten Canadians with another election in 18 months, the conservatives will be ready.”
China weighs in after Conservatives promise to ‘stand up’ to Beijing
O’Toole sought to tamp down talk of Conservative challengers by saying he was “resolutely determined” to lead the party into the next election.
It is six years since Trudeau, son of former prime minister Pierre Trudeau, swept to power. Beyond Canada, there was global fascination at his youthful good looks, charisma, and political pedigree. But his ruling Liberal Party was reduced to minority status in 2019, supported by the NDP, which is led by Jagmeet Singh.
Trudeau had hoped that Canadians would reward his handling of the pandemic. Although Canada in the midst of a fourth wave of the pandemic, the country has one of the world’s best vaccination rates. About 80 per cent of eligible Canadians aged 12 and up are fully vaccinated, representing 70 per cent of the entire population.
But he was dogged on the campaign trail by protesters, some from the far-right People’s Party of Canada, who were opposed to pandemic lockdowns and vaccinations. He branded them “anti-vaxxer mobs”.
O’Toole didn’t require his party’s candidates to be vaccinated and would not say how many were unvaccinated. He described vaccination as a personal health decision.
Although foreign policy did not take centre stage during the campaign, there were allegations of electoral interference by China.
The NDP and Conservative Party are at opposite ends of the political spectrum, but both had vowed to “stand up” to China in their election platforms.
The Conservatives, in particular, peppered their platform with dozens of references to China on a host of issues, from trade to security. That apparently prompted Chinese ambassador Cong Peiwu to say that Beijing opposed Canadian politicians “smearing” China, while Chinese state newspaper Global Times warned the Tory platform would “invite counterstrikes” if implemented.
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Conservative MP Kenny Chiu, the Hong Kong-born incumbent in the metro Vancouver electorate of Steveston-Richmond East - one of the most Chinese seats in Canada - was handily defeated by Liberal Parm Bains, 42 per cent to 33 per cent.
Chiu said he had doors shut in his face on the campaign trail, and some supporters had abandoned him as a result of his positions on China and Hong Kong, which he said were the subject of “significant disinformation”.
“But on the other hand I’ve also received a lot of support for my stances … including many people from mainland China,” said Chiu on Monday.
Chiu, who said he supported Hongkongers’ demands for “political freedom” and was the sponsor of a private member’s bill to create a foreign agent registry, was sanctioned by China in April as the vice-chair of the Canadian parliament’s subcommittee on international human rights.
Chiu was among international election monitors for the 2019 district council elections in Hong Kong. He is now unable to visit his birthplace as a result of China’s sanctions.
Ethnic Chinese make up 47 per cent of Steveston-Richmond East’s population. Hong Kong immigrants make up 11 per cent, while mainland Chinese immigrants make up about 18 per cent.
Two of the other three Canadian MPs who were born in Hong Kong also occupy Vancouver-area ridings.
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The NDP’s Jenny Kwan easily retained her Vancouver East seat.
The NDP platform pledged to “call out human rights abuses by China, stand with Hong Kong pro-democracy asylum seekers, and provide coordinated support for those facing threats by Chinese entities here in Canada”.
Kwan, the NDP’s immigration critic, had lobbied for immigration measures to accommodate people exiting Hong Kong, and had pushed for the party platform to include its Hong Kong reference.
“What’s been happening in Hong Kong is devastating to me,” Kwan said last week. “I’ll never forget where I come from, where I was born.”
Hong Kong-born Conservative Alice Wong was lagging Liberal challenger Wilson Miao in the seat of Richmond Centre, while in Ontario, Liberal Mary Ng easily retained her Markham-Thornhill riding.
Meng, meanwhile, is waiting for a Vancouver judge to rule whether to free her or approve her extradition to the US.
Additional reporting by Agence France-Presse and Associated Press