Mark Carney clinches majority government in Canadian special elections

OTTAWA, Canada − Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has secured a parliamentary majority for his Liberal government, a win he has said will help him deal more effectively with the trade war started by President Donald Trump.

It also probably means Carney, who took office with no political experience and has earned global praise for his efforts to band middle-power nations together, won't have to worry about an election for years.

Capping off an extraordinary few months in Canada when several opposition members joined Carney's Liberals, his party said on X that it had secured two districts − known as ridings − in Ontario in special elections.

Those were the ridings of University-Rosedale and Scarborough Southwest, which have long voted Liberal. The results of a third election are still being counted.

Polling from Nanos shows more than half of Canadians prefer Carney as their prime minister, with just 23% picking Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre. Before Carney became leader of the Liberal Party last year, Poilievre had been projected to win the next election by more than 20 points.

“Carney has done a fairly good job showing Canadians he can handle Trump,” said McDougall of the University of Toronto. “He’s shown Canadians he’s a competent manager of the economy and the country. And so far Canadians have not been overly impressed by the alternatives.”