Justin Trudeau is stepping down as prime minister and Liberal leader but will stay on until a new leader is in place.
Trudeau made the announcement Monday morning outside of his home at Rideau Cottage in Ottawa.
He also announced that the governor general had granted his request to prorogue Parliament until March 24.
“This country deserves a real choice in the next election. And it has become clear to me that if I’m having to fight internal battles, I cannot be the best option in that election,” Trudeau told reporters.
Trudeau’s resignation comes ahead of a special national Liberal caucus meeting that was scheduled for Wednesday.
He has faced growing pressure from outside and inside the party to resign amid sinking public opinion polling.
Those calls have intensified since Chrystia Freeland suddenly stepped down as finance minister and deputy prime minister in December.
Several of the Liberal Party’s regional caucuses, including Atlantic Canada and Ontario, had all called for Trudeau to resign.
Meanwhile, the Conservatives, NDP and Bloc Quebecois all say they have lost confidence in the government.
Nothing has really changed, said Conservative leader
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, responding to Trudeau’s resignation, said nothing has really changed with Monday’s announcement.
Poilievre said there is only one reason why Liberal MPs and leadership contenders waited until just before an election to dump their leader.
“Their only objection is that he is no longer popular enough to win an election and keep them in power,” said the Conservative leader.
“They want to protect their pensions and paycheques by sweeping their hated leader under the rug months before an election to trick you, and then do it all over again.”
Poilievre once again renewed calls for an election to be held sooner than the scheduled October vote.
‘All’ Liberal MPs are to blame: NDP leader
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said he feels that Justin Trudeau has let Canadians down.
But Singh said his resignation as Liberal leader does not solve the problems facing the country.
“This is not just about Justin Trudeau. This is every Liberal minister, this is every Liberal MP, all of them are to blame for the situation we’re in right now. It is all of their collective faults,” he told reporters.
Singh added that his party will help to force an election when parliament resumes in March.
“As soon as there is a confidence vote, we will be voting against the government. It is clear that they have let down people,” he said.
Singh claimed that the Conservatives, under Poilievre, would cut from people to give more to CEOs.
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