As Liberal party brass begins to chart course for an expedited race to find Justin Trudeau’s successor, potential contenders are weighing whether or not to join the fray — including former central banker Mark Carney.
The former Bank of Canada governor issued a statement Monday evening saying he is encouraged by support he has heard, and that he’s considering his decision with family over the next few days.
Carney said he is “encouraged and honoured” by the support he has been hearing from Liberal MPs and Liberals across the country who want the party to move forward “with positive change and a winning economic plan.”
“That’s what it will take to defeat Pierre Poilievre, to get Canada back on track and to build the strongest economy that works for all Canadians,” he said. “I’ll be considering this decision closely with my family over the coming few days.”
Former Montreal MP Frank Baylis was the first to publicly declare his intent to seek the Liberal leadership in an interview Monday with The Hill Times.
Party officials are expected to meet this week to begin the process for selecting the new leader.
Parliament is prorogued until March 24, but leaders of the main opposition parties say they will bring down the government at the earliest opportunity.
That means Canadians will likely head to the polls this spring.
Some former Liberal advisers are split on how quickly the leadership process should move with little time for Trudeau’s successor to actually lead before the government falls.
But having a quick leadership race provides little time for the party electorate to get to know the candidates.
No sitting MP has formally declared their intention to run but speculation is already buzzing in Ottawa about who may vie for the job.
Among them are Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, whom the New York Times profiled last month as Trudeau’s potential successor and former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, whose shock resignation shortly before the Christmas break served as the catalyst for renewed calls for Trudeau to step down.
Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, House Leader Karina Gould, Transport Minister Anita Anand, Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne, and Energy Minister Jonathan Wilkinson are also all said to be kicking the tires of a possible run.
Other high-profile candidate who may seek the leadership former B.C. premier Christy Clark. She and Carney have both been subject to Conservative attack ads in recent weeks.
