Justin Trudeau’s run may come to an end as early as this week, with reports suggesting that he is likely to step down as the Prime Minister of Canada.
All eyes would be on the national Liberal Party caucus set to be held on Wednesday, and Trudeau is likely to step down before that. At the caucus, a decision would be taken on whether Trudeau would remain in office in an interim capacity. However, his Liberal Party is of the opinion that Trudeau should remit office and make way for a new face.
The thinking within Trudeau’s party
Trudeau may be pushing to remain in office in an interim capacity. However, his party members are of the view that he should step aside and pave the way for a new face. This is crucial for the party in the upcoming elections later this year.
The party members indicated that the polls were against Trudeau’s leadership and not the Liberal Party as a whole. In this event, it would be important for the party to face the polls with a new face rather than Project Trudeau, whose numbers have plummeted like never before.
The Liberal Party is of the view that if a new face heads the government at this moment, then there could be course correction, and by the time the elections are held, the wrongdoings of Trudeau may be forgotten.
Further, the Liberal Party is also mindful of the fact that Donald Trump will be inaugurated on January 20. His views about Trudeau are well known, and Trump has often referred to the Canadian Prime Minister as a left-leaning lunatic. Trudeau’s party members feel that it would be easier to deal with a Trump administration if there is a new face at the helm in Canada. They are not wrong in their thinking since, with Trudeau around, Donald Trump is more likely to make the battle even more personal.
Trudeau came to power in 2015 and led his party to two more victories in 2019 and 2021. Since then, he has made more enemies than friends. He has ruined ties with Bharat thanks to his baseless allegations and pro-Khalistan stance. He has also rubbed several world leaders, including Donald Trump, the wrong way.
While Trudeau had shown promise, his ratings have since dipped. He currently trails his main rival, Pierre Poilievre, by 20 points in the public opinion polls. The Liberal Party is sure that gap will only increase, and the numbers cannot be reversed as long as Trudeau is in office. Hence, it is unlikely that the party will even be allowed to serve in an interim capacity until the polls are held.
Never trust the Khalistanis
It is a well-known fact that Trudeau backed the Khalistanis for his own political gain. Even when his government lost the numbers, it was Jagmeet Singh, a pro-Khalistan leader who heads the New Democratic Party (NDP), who backed him. Initially, Singh was part of the Trudeau government, but later on pulled out.
Despite pulling out, his party continued to back Trudeau on several legislations that had to be passed in Parliament. There was an undisclosed understanding between Singh and Trudeau; hence, the former voted in favour of crucial issues in Parliament, which resulted in the government surviving.
Jagmeet Singh is, however, a smart player and soon realised that the tide was turning against Trudeau. He made an about-turn when Trump won the elections. Singh is aware that a Trump presidency would mean hell for Trudeau, and hence, he made the decision to back out. Trudeau may be feeling the heat today, and it may have dawned upon him that the Khalistanis are loyal to none other than their masters, who control them from Pakistan.
Singh in fact was quick to back a no-confidence motion proposed by the Conservative Party. He is well aware that the tide is blowing in favour of the Conservative Party, and he would need to back them for his own political survival. Further, he needs to be in some position of power to ensure that the Khalistanis who he backs are not driven out of the country or extradited to Bharat. In a nutshell, Singh played the smart game and ditched Trudeau, who he feels is of no importance to him anymore.
Trudeau has nowhere to go
Trudeau today finds himself in a situation that he has never been in before. He is a loner with no support whatsoever from his own party. His repeated efforts to save his chair have failed, and his entire party has united against him and wants him out.
Trudeau has also not been able to convince his party on two key issues. The first is to face the trust vote sometime later this month. He clearly does not have the numbers. Further, if the trust vote fails, the entire government will collapse. The Liberals feel that, with Trudeau out, they would be able to convince a certain section, at least, to back them during a trust vote. If they win the trust vote then the party has time until October 2025 to get some course correction done.
Another proposal by Trudeau to prorogue Parliament, too, did not have any takers. Had he managed to convince his party members about the same, a trust vote would have been averted for now, and Trudeau would have got some breathing space. However, his party realises that buying time is not the solution. Getting Trudeau out of the PM’s office is the only option to salvage some pride and fight the election.
While there were reports of a major rift within the party, the entire episode blew out following the resignation of Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland. Her resignation came in the wake of Trump threatening to increase tariffs. She accused Trudeau of failing to adopt fiscally responsible measures.
To make matters worse, Trump has been scathing in his remarks against Trudeau. Trudeau, who had once referred to Trump as Hitler, held out the olive branch following his win in December. He reached his resort in the US and discussed tariffs with Trump. The US President-elect even joked that if Canada could not afford the tariffs, then it could become another state of the US, and Trudeau could be its governor. Since then, Trump, in all his Truth Social posts, has regularly referred to him as Governor Trudeau.
The situation is just not conducive for Trudeau as he faces pressure both internally and externally. The people of Canada have voiced their opinion already and have criticised his administration. In this context, Trudeau is staring into blank space, and his end as the Prime Minister of Canada is imminent. How soon would that happen? The experts believe it could be as early as this week.
