Justin Trudeau has won a second term as Canada’s prime minister – but has lost his majority in parliament.
With the results from the
election still trickling in on Tuesday morning, Trudeau’s Liberal party had 157 seats – 13 short of the 170 needed for a majority.
It means that the PM – who saw his popularity drop during the election campaign after photos of him in brownface and blackface emerged – will have to rely on an opposition party to pass legislation.
Speaking on results night, Trudeau said Canadians had “rejected division and negativity”.
“They rejected cuts and austerity,” he said. “They elected a progressive agenda and strong action on climate change.”
The Canadian vote came down to what was essentially a choice between Trudeau and the Conservatives’ Andrew Scheer.
In his concession speech, Scheer said the Conservatives had “put
Justin Trudeau on notice”.
“And Mr Trudeau – when your government falls, Conservatives will be ready and we will win.”As of Tuesday morning, Scheer’s party had secured 121 seats in parliament, adding an extra 26 MPs to its benches.
Trudeau’s Liberals are likely to rely on the left-wing New
Democrats to form a government and pass legislation.
The election marks his second term as prime minister, having first been elected in 2015 on a platform of progressive pledges.
But Robert Bothwell, a professor of Canadian history and international relations at the University of
Toronto, said this election was “not quite the same”.
“It’s not all owing to the leader,” he said.“Trudeau is prime minister because the rest of the party was able to pull itself together and prevail.
“While Trudeau certainly deserves credit for what has happened, he’s really going to have to demonstrate qualities that he hasn’t yet shown.”
On
Twitter,
Donald Trump congratulated Trudeau for his “wonderful and hard fought victory”.
“I look forward to working with you toward the betterment of both of our countries,” he wrote.Congratulations to @JustinTrudeau on a wonderful and hard fought victory.
Canada is well served. I look forward to working with you toward the betterment of both of our countries!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 22, 2019During the election campaign, Trudeau received an endorsement from former president
Barack Obama, who said the world needed his progressive leadership. Related... Justin Trudeau Apologises After 'Brownface' Photo From 2001 Emerges Justin Trudeau Says He Can’t Remember How Many Times He’s Worn Blackface