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2025 Canadian federal election
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The 2025 Canadian federal election was held on April 28, 2025, to elect members of the House of Commons to the 45th Canadian Parliament. Governor General Mary Simon issued the writs of election on March 23, 2025,[3] after Prime Minister Mark Carney advised her to dissolve Parliament. This was the first election to use a new 343-seat electoral map based on the 2021 census. Key issues of the election campaign included the cost of living, housing, crime, and tariffs and threats of annexation from Donald Trump, the president of the United States.[4]
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The Liberal Party won a fourth term, emerging with a minority government for a third consecutive election;[5][6][7] it also marked the first time they won the popular vote since 2015, doing so with the highest vote share for any party in a federal election since 1984.[8] The party's victory came after a substantial rebound in the polls, noted as being "one of the widest on record in any democracy".[9] The election also saw the highest turnout since 1993, with 69.5% of eligible voters casting a ballot.[10]
Both the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party improved upon their vote share and seat count from 2021, while the other parties all lost ground; this was the most concentrated the popular vote had been in support of the top two parties since 1958, with over 85% voting Liberal or Conservative.[11] Consequently, the election delivered the New Democratic Party (NDP) their worst result in its history, as it received just over six percent of the popular vote and only won seven seats. As a result, the NDP lost official party status for the first time since 1993.[12] The concentration of support for the two major parties was identified by commentators as marking a polarization in Canadian politics and a shift towards a two-party system.[13][14]
The result was a reversal of polling trends lasting from mid-2023 to January 2025, which had led to projections of the Conservatives winning in a landslide.[15] Carney's replacement of Justin Trudeau as leader of the Liberal Party played a key role in the turnaround. With his extensive experience as a central banker and his perceived competence, Carney was seen as better equipped to handle the trade war launched by the U.S. and other major economic issues.[16][17] Two sitting party leaders failed to win re-election to their parliamentary seats: Pierre Poilievre of the Conservative Party and Jagmeet Singh of the NDP.[18][19] Poilievre had held his riding since 2004, and his defeat was regarded as a significant setback for the Conservatives.[20]
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Background
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The 2021 Canadian federal election, held on September 20, 2021, saw only minor changes from the preceding 2019 election.[21] The incumbent Liberal Party, led by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, did not win the popular vote and failed to win enough seats to gain a parliamentary majority, winning only a plurality of seats and retaining its status as a minority government. The Conservative Party won the popular vote and continued as the Official Opposition.[22][c] In March 2022, the Liberals struck a deal with the fourth-place New Democratic Party (NDP), where the latter would provide confidence and supply for the duration of the Parliament in exchange for certain policy concessions.[23] The agreement lasted until September 2024, when the NDP terminated the deal.[24]
One week after the 2021 election, on September 27, Annamie Paul resigned as the Green Party leader, citing lack of party support.[25] The subsequent leadership election was won by former leader Elizabeth May, who ran on a "joint ticket" with Jonathan Pedneault, proposing a co-leadership model; Pedneault was officially named the deputy leader, pending a change to the party's constitution to allow co-leadership.[26] May and Pedneault formally became co-leaders on February 4, 2025.[27]
On February 2, 2022, Conservative leader Erin O'Toole was removed as leader by a caucus vote.[28] Following a leadership election, Pierre Poilievre was elected the new leader of the Conservative Party.[29]
Because of the decennial redrawing of riding boundaries, many MPs were running in districts that had changed.[30][31]
Government transition
Despite low government approval ratings and a large polling lead for the opposition Conservatives – linked to an ongoing cost of living crisis – Trudeau had insisted he would lead the Liberals into the next general election, and attempt to win a fourth consecutive term. Despite his commitment to seek re-election, pressure on Trudeau to step aside had been mounting from the Liberal caucus after by-election losses in safe Liberal seats.[32]
On December 16, 2024, the government was plunged into a political crisis when finance minister Chrystia Freeland abruptly resigned, only hours before she was set to present the government's fall economic statement.[33] The resignation was seen as a clear rebuke of the prime minister from one of his most loyal allies, and sent shockwaves throughout Canadian politics.[34] Trudeau, who had already faced down a caucus revolt in October, was faced with renewed questions about his leadership.[35] By December 22, 21 Liberal MPs had publicly called for Trudeau to step down.[36] On January 6, 2025, Trudeau announced his intention to resign as prime minister after the party elected his successor.[37] The ensuing leadership election was won by Mark Carney, former governor of the Bank of Canada and governor of the Bank of England.[38] Carney was sworn in as prime minister on March 14, becoming the first prime minister to have never held elected public office prior to their appointment.[39][40]
The crisis occurred against the backdrop of Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 United States presidential election and his threats to impose sweeping tariffs on Canada. Disagreements over how to handle this threat were seen as being a contributor to the Trudeau ministry's collapse.[41][42] However, the Trump administration's conduct soon sparked a political revival for the Liberals, with the ensuing trade war, along with the President's threats to annex Canada, greatly reducing the Liberals' polling gap with the Conservatives.[43] By the time Carney was sworn in as prime minister, the polling gap had been eliminated altogether and the Liberals were in the lead, putting them in striking distance of a majority government. The scale of their political turnaround was described by analysts as having "little precedent" in Canadian history.[44]
Date of the election
Under the fixed-date provisions of the Canada Elections Act, which requires federal elections to be held on the third Monday in October in the fourth calendar year after the polling day of the previous election, the election was scheduled to take place on October 20, 2025.[45] However, elections can occur before the scheduled date if the governor general dissolves Parliament on the recommendation of the prime minister, either for a snap election or after the government loses a vote on a supply bill or a specific motion of no confidence.[46]
On March 20, 2024, the government introduced the Electoral Participation Act, which included an amendment to the Canada Elections Act that would have changed the fixed election date to October 27, 2025, to avoid conflicting with Diwali, as well as municipal elections in Alberta.[47][48] The bill died on the order paper when the Parliament of Canada was prorogued by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after he announced his resignation.[49]
On March 23, 2025, after a request from Prime Minister Mark Carney, the Governor General dissolved parliament and called an election for April 28, 2025.[50] The date fixed for the return of the writs by the Chief Electoral Officer was 19 May 2025.[3]
Political parties and standings
The table below lists parties represented in the House of Commons after the 2021 federal election and their current standings. Kevin Vuong, despite being elected as a Liberal, was disavowed by the party too late to alter his affiliation on the ballot and served out his term as an independent.[51]
Electoral system
Canada's electoral system, a "first-past-the-post" system, is formally referred to as a single-member plurality system. Voters select a representative nominated for their electoral district (sometimes referred to as a riding), and the candidate with more votes than any other candidate is elected to a seat in the 343-member House of Commons and represents that riding as its member of parliament (MP). The party that wins the most seats in the House of Commons usually forms government, with that party's leader becoming prime minister. The largest party by seat count that is not the government or part of a governing coalition becomes the Official Opposition. That party receives more finances and privileges than the other opposition parties.[52][53]
An absolute majority of the votes cast in the last election is not needed to form government and is rarely achieved. Additionally, the government party does not need to obtain a majority of the seats in the House of Commons; under the current multi-party system, it is common for the government party to lack a majority. However, to pass bills domestically, the governing party must have support of a majority of MPs. Without majority support, the government can be defeated, then a new party is named government or an election has to be held.[46]
Redistribution
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( Interactive map version, with notional results shown in clickable points)
This was the first election contested under the new electoral districts established in the 2022 redistribution. Consequently, media outlets tend to report seat gains and losses as compared to notional results. These are the results if all votes cast in 2021 were unchanged but regrouped by new electoral district boundaries, as published by Elections Canada.[54]
Incumbents not running for re-election
Sixty MPs announced that they would not run in the 2025 federal election. One MP lost their party nomination race to run again. One MP had their candidacy revoked by their party and was barred from running under its banner. Four MPs announced their intention not to stand again but later resigned from Parliament before the election.[55][56][57][58][59] Five further MPs initially announced their intention to stand down before later changing their minds.[60][61][62][63][64][65]
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Timeline
2021
- September 27 – Annamie Paul announced her intent to resign as leader of the Green Party.[81]
- November 10 – Paul formally submitted her resignation and ended her membership in the party.[82] The Green Party accepted her resignation a few days later.[83][84]
- November 15 – Senator Denise Batters launched a petition to review the leadership of Erin O'Toole.[85] Party president Robert Batherson decided the petition was not in order.[85] The following day, Batters was removed from the Conservative caucus.[86]
- November 24 – Amita Kuttner was appointed as Green Party interim leader.[87][88]
- December 5 – The People's Party concluded its leadership review of Maxime Bernier. He was confirmed and continued as leader.[89][90]
2022
- February 2 – Erin O'Toole was removed as the leader of the Conservative Party by a caucus vote.[28] Candice Bergen was selected by the party caucus to serve as interim leader.[91][92]
- March 22 – The Liberal and New Democratic parties reached a confidence and supply agreement, with the NDP agreeing to support the Liberal government until June 2025 in exchange for specific policy commitments.[93]
- September 10 – The 2022 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election concluded with Pierre Poilievre being announced as the new leader of the Conservatives.[29]
- November 19 – The 2022 Green Party of Canada leadership election concluded with Elizabeth May and Jonathan Pedneault announced as winners on a "joint ticket". May became leader and Pedneault deputy leader of the party, pending a change to the party's constitution to allow co-leadership.[26]
2023
- July 26 – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau conducted a major cabinet reshuffle.[94]
- September 26 – Anthony Rota announced his intention to resign as Speaker of the House of Commons. Louis Plamondon was nominated to replace Rota on an interim basis.[95]
- October 3 – Liberal MP Greg Fergus was elected speaker of the House of Commons. He was the first person of colour to be elected speaker.[96]
2024
- September 4 – The NDP officially ended their confidence-and-supply agreement with the Liberals.[97]
- November 20 – Liberal MP Randy Boissonnault resigned from Cabinet following allegations that he ran a business seeking federal contracts and falsely claimed to be Indigenous.[98]
- December 9 – Trudeau's Liberal government survived a third motion of no confidence, with the Conservatives and Bloc Québécois voting for the motion, and the Liberals, NDP, and Greens opposed.[99]
- December 16 – Chrystia Freeland, the incumbent deputy prime minister and minister of finance, resigned from her position in Justin Trudeau's government prior to the release later that day of the government's fall economic statement due to her opposition to Trudeau's fiscal policy;[33] later that day, she was replaced as minister of finance by Dominic LeBlanc, while the position of Deputy Prime Minister remained vacant.[100] Housing minister Sean Fraser also resigned from cabinet the same morning, citing personal reasons.[101]
- December 20 – Trudeau conducted a major cabinet reshuffle. The NDP officially committed to introducing a non-confidence motion against the government. Over 20 Liberal MPs publicly called for Trudeau to resign and over 50 signed a private letter asking him to resign.[102]
2025
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- January 6 – Trudeau announced the prorogation of parliament until March 24 in addition to his resignation as prime minister and as leader of the Liberal Party, effective upon the election of his successor as party leader in a leadership election.[103]
- January 15 – Trudeau announced that he will not run in Papineau again.[104]
- February 4 – The Green Party of Canada concluded its co-leadership vote, with Elizabeth May and Jonathan Pedneault re-elected as co-leaders.[27]
- February 13 – People's Party of Canada leader Maxime Bernier announced he will run in Beauce again.[105]
- March 3 – Green Party of Canada co-leader Jonathan Pedneault announced he will run in Outremont.[106]
- March 9 – The 2025 Liberal Party of Canada leadership election concluded with Mark Carney being announced as the new leader of the Liberal Party of Canada.
- March 14 – Carney was sworn in as the 24th prime minister of Canada, and appointed a new Cabinet, beginning the 30th Canadian Ministry.[107]
- March 20 – Liberal MP Chandra Arya's nomination in Nepean was revoked, allegedly due to foreign interference concerns.[108] He had previously been disqualified as a Liberal leadership candidate.[109]
- March 22 – Carney announced that he will run in Nepean.[110]
- March 23 – Carney advised the governor general to dissolve parliament and call a general election for April 28, 2025.[111]
- April 7 and 9 – Deadline for candidate nominations; final list of candidates published.[112]
- April 16 and 17 – French and English language leaders' debates hosted by the Leaders' Debates Commission took place in Montreal.[113]
- April 18 to 21 – Advance polling took place. According to an Elections Canada estimate released on April 22, 7.3 million electors participated in advance polls.[114]
- April 22 – Last day to vote at an Elections Canada office or to apply to vote by mail.
- April 28 – Election day.
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Campaign
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Contests
When nominations were closed on April 7, Elections Canada announced that 1,959 candidates would be running for election.[115] No party fielded full slates of candidates in all 343 ridings, though the Bloc Québécois, which only runs candidates in Quebec, covered all 78 Quebec constituencies. The Liberals, Conservatives and NDP were all one short,[116] respectively in Ponoka—Didsbury,[117] Québec Centre[118] and South Shore—St. Margarets.[119] In Ponoka—Didsbury, Zarnab Zafar was not identified as a Liberal allegedly because of "a clerical error with Elections Canada" and is under no affiliation, but the Liberals endorsed her. In Québec Centre, there was said to be "an issue with paperwork" causing the Conservative candidate's nomination to be rejected after the deadline for candidate registrations.[120] The NDP candidate in South Shore—St. Margarets withdrew for personal reasons,[116] and an independent candidate in the riding was endorsed by the NDP afterward.[119]
The Longest Ballot Committee targeted Poilievre's Carleton riding, which had 83 independents nominated, therefore there were a total of 91 candidates running in the riding.[121] When asked why they did not do similar efforts in the constituencies of other party leaders, the organizers said it was a matter of limited resources.[122]
Party slogans
Policy platforms
Endorsements
Leaders' debates
In its May 2022 report, the Leaders' Debates Commission recommended various improvements for future debates, and that it remain a permanent publicly funded entity to organize leaders' debates.[171][172] In October 2024, the Leaders' Debate Commission announced that the English-language debate would be hosted by TVO's Steve Paikin, while the French-language debate would be hosted by Ici RDI's Patrice Roy.[173] TVA Nouvelles had announced plans to host its own French-language debate with the Bloc, Conservative, Liberal, and NDP leaders, but cancelled the event after the Liberal Party withdrew.[174][175]
On April 1, 2025, the commission announced that it had invited the leaders of the Bloc Québécois, Conservative Party, Green Party, Liberal Party, and New Democratic Party to the debates. Invitations were issued on the basis of meeting at least two of three conditions: having at least one sitting MP, recording at least 4% support in national opinion polling, and endorsing candidates in at least 90 percent of ridings.[176] The Green Party's invitation was rescinded on April 16 as it ultimately ran candidates in 232 ridings (less than 70 percent) despite earlier submitting to the Commission that it would run candidates in every riding.[177][178] The People's Party was not invited, as it did not meet the criteria of either holding a seat in Parliament or polling at least 4%.[176][113][f]
On April 15, the leaders of the Bloc Québécois and the NDP suggested rescheduling the French language debate because of the debate coinciding with the final hockey game of the Montreal Canadiens' regular season, after it became clear the game would decide whether the Canadiens would make the playoffs. The Commission declined to reschedule the debate to a different day, but agreed to move the start time two hours earlier to 6:00 pm EDT.[180]
A post-debate news scrum after the French language debate was dominated by the far-right Rebel News and other right-wing media outlets, leading to complaints from other journalists at the event.[181] Michel Cormier, the commission's executive director, responded that he was "unaware" that Rebel News and another organization associated with Rebel founder Ezra Levant were registered as third-party advertisers with Elections Canada.[182][183] In an interview, David Cochrane of CBC News asked Cormier about the fairness of the distribution of questions among outlets and the type of questions asked. Cormier responded, "There's only so much we can do to control free speech."[184] During the English language debate the next day, CTV News and The Globe and Mail reported a disturbance between Levant and journalists from other outlets, and a Global News reporter suggested that Rebel staff tried to interfere with the live broadcast of the debate.[181] Cormier abruptly cancelled the planned news scrum, citing security concerns, as Montreal Police secured the venue.[183][185]
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Opinion polls
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Results
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Perspective
The Liberals maintained their status as being the largest party in the House of Commons and won the popular vote for the first time since the 2015 election, after having lost the popular vote in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections.
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| Two-party vote swing | Two-party seat swing | Two-party vote share |
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| Liberals' performance by riding | ||
Judicial recounts
On May 5, Irek Kusmierczyk, the Liberal candidate running in Windsor—Tecumseh—Lakeshore, applied for a judicial recount.[188] In addition, for differences in votes slimmer than 0.1%, judicial recounts were automatically triggered in 3 ridings.[189]
Terrebonne
After the Terrebonne recount result was announced, it emerged that a mail-in ballot had been returned by Canada Post because of a faulty address, even though the envelope had been preprinted by the office of the local returning officer. As the ballot was marked for the Bloc candidate, a tie vote would have forced a by-election.[195] On May 14, Elections Canada announced that they had conducted an analysis revealing that only that ballot had come to their attention, but they were expanding their review of the special ballot voting system in general, which had been announced after a separate incident occurred in Coquitlam—Port Coquitlam.[196][197] However, the agency declared that it regards the result of the judicial recount as final.[198] According to reports by Radio-Canada and Le Devoir, the Bloc was not ruling out contesting the result in court but had to wait until the result of the recount was published in the Canada Gazette,[199][200] which occurred on May 15.[201] Auguste was consequentially able to be sworn in as MP for the riding.[202]
On May 15, Yves-François Blanchet announced in Ottawa that that the Bloc would be applying to the Superior Court of Quebec to order a by-election on the basis of irregularities that occurred, not just on the ballot returned to the voter, but also on five other ballots that had been received by Elections Canada too late to be counted.[203] He said, "Since Elections Canada cannot by themselves ask for the election to be repeated, we have to bring this situation in front of a judge, in a court, in order to do the election all over again." The application was filed in court on May 23,[204] and the hearing is scheduled to take place in October 2025.[205]
If successful, this would be the first time at the federal level that an election result had been overturned on such grounds.[206] The last attempt to do so arose in Etobicoke Centre in 2011, where Ted Opitz defeated Borys Wrzesnewskyj by 26 votes. The application was allowed at first instance, but the ruling was reversed 4–3 on appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada, a process that took a year and a half to complete.[207][208]
Terra Nova—The Peninsulas
The recount process proved to last longer than anticipated. The 279 ballot boxes had to be gathered together at a central secure location in Marystown before the process could start.[209] All 41,670 ballots (including 579 that had initially been rejected) were re-examined, and about 1,000 ballots were determined to be in dispute.[210] After working through the Victoria Day weekend,[211] the work had to stop for two days because of a scheduled shutdown of the local water supply, which forced the closure of all public buildings.[209] Work was completed on May 23, resulting in a flipping of the riding to the Conservatives.[192]
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Results breakdown
Synopsis of results
- "April 28, 2025 General Election Election Results". elections.ca. Retrieved June 2, 2025.
- Sorted in order of electoral district number
- minor political parties are aggregated under "Other"; independent candidates are aggregated separately
- "Additional Data". Transposition of Votes from the 44th General Election to the 2023 Representation Orders. Elections Canada. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
- Results as determined in judicial recount.
- Brendan Mosher, nominated as the NDP candidate, withdrew from the race for personal reasons before nominations closed. The independent candidate Hayden Henderson was subsequently endorsed by the NDP.
- Dominic Cardy, former PC MLA and Cabinet minister in New Brunswick, and now the leader of the Canadian Future Party, received 345 votes.
- Carlos Leitão was Quebec's Minister of Finance under Philippe Couillard.
- Patrick Kerr had previously stood as a Green candidate in the past three federal elections.
- The Longest Ballot Committee had arranged for the nomination of 83 candidates as either independent or of no affiliation.
- Chandra Arya's nomination was revoked in order to allow Mark Carney to stand for a seat in the House.
- Vance Badawey was the Liberal incumbent elected in 2021, but transposition of votes through redistribution gave the riding a Conservative plurality.
- Rod Loyola had been the nominated Liberal candidate until he was removed by the national office. Continuing as an independent, he received 2,455 votes.
- Zarnab Zafar was nominated as the Liberal candidate, but was not identified as such because of a flaw in her nomination papers. She was endorsed by the Liberals, and came in at 4th place.
- Mike de Jong, previously a Liberal MLA and Cabinet minister in BC, was originally recommended for the Conservative nomination, but was disqualified by the national office.
- John Aldag was previously elected as an NDP MP for Cloverdale—Langley City in 2021, but quit in 2024 to campaign in (but fail to win) Langley-Abbotsford in the 2024 British Columbia general election.
- Gregor Robertson was also previously Mayor of Vancouver.
- = newly created ridings
- = open seat
- = winning candidate was in previous House
- = not incumbent; was previously elected as an MP
- = incumbent had switched allegiance
- = incumbency arose from byelection gain
- = previously incumbent in another riding
- = other incumbents renominated
- = Previously a member of one of the provincial/territorial legislatures
- = multiple candidates
Comparative analysis for ridings (2025 vs. 2021)
Ternary plots of election results
2021 (transposed results)
2025
- "April 28, 2025 General Election Election Results". elections.ca. Retrieved June 2, 2025.
- "Additional Data". Transposition of Votes from the 44th General Election to the 2023 Representation Orders. Elections Canada. Retrieved March 17, 2025.
- Share won by winning candidate, with difference noted from share achieved by the same party in 2021.
- Positive indicates improvement to standing of party winning in 2021; negative points to 2021's second-place party being swung to.
- PPC was in 2nd place in 2021, but did not contest the 2025 election.
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Summary analysis
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Perspective
Results by province
Close races
Incumbents are denoted in bold and followed by (I).
Seats that changed hands
The following seats changed allegiance from the 2021 redistributed results.
MPs who lost re-election
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Analysis and aftermath
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Perspective
Strength of 1st-place finishes
2025 vs 2021
2025 (by winning party)
Strength of 2nd-place finishes
2025 vs 2021
2025 (by party finishing second)
Strength of other candidates
2025 vs 2021
2025
Marginality of election results
2025 vs 2021
2025 (by winning party)
Wikinews has related news:
Significant milestones included the following:
- the Liberals won the popular vote for the first time since 2015
- they earned their highest vote share since 1980, as well as the highest vote share for any party in a federal election since 1984.[214][8]
- the election saw the highest turnout since 1993, with 69.5% of eligible voters casting a ballot.[10][2]
- both the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party improved upon their vote share and seat count from 2021, while the other parties all lost ground
- this was the first election since 2000 in which the Liberals, or any party, polled over 40 percent; the first since 1988 in which the Conservatives did so;[m] and the first time since 1930 in which both passed that threshold[215]
- this was the most concentrated the popular vote had been in support of the top two parties since 1958, with over 85% voting Liberal or Conservative[11]
The election results represented a significant contrast to the polling estimates prior to the election. In December 2024, the Conservatives had a 20 percentage point lead over the Liberals; however, Trudeau's resignation and U.S. president Donald Trump's hostile foreign policy towards Canada were reasons that led to a significant change in public opinion that favored the Liberals. Comparisons have been made to the Australian federal election held on May 3, 2025, where the incumbent centre-left government, led by the Labor Party, overturned a significant deficit in polling, made gains, and remained in government. Commentators spoke of a negative "Trump effect" as the Australian opposition conservative leader Peter Dutton also lost his seat.[216][217][218]
Strategic voting played a role in the election, which benefitted the Liberals, moving it closer to a two-party system.[13][14] The declining performance of the New Democratic Party (NDP) in the election was also attributed to strategic voting.[14][219] Alex Marland, the Jarislowsky chair in trust and political leadership at Acadia University in Nova Scotia, said that Trump's interference and threats significantly affected the results, stating, "It really galvanized progressives, people on the political left. You can see the collapse of the NDP vote. A big reason for people who would have voted NDP ending up voting Liberal was really because of fear over Donald Trump."[14] Gabriel Arsenault, a political science professor at the Université de Moncton, emphasised the results being closer to a two-party system. In December 2024, the Liberals and Conservatives were polling together around 65 percent of the intention votes versus the around 85 percent they got in the election. In reference to the NDP, Arsenault added, "[Pierre] Poilievre sought votes among workers, and usually that would be the main group where the NDP got its votes, so I think it has to transform itself."[14] As for the Green Party, which won only one seat, Arsenault said, "We'll have to see if this is just temporary because of Trump, or [if] this is illustrative of a bigger trend here."[14]
Abacus Data determined the following migration patterns of voters from 2021:
Analysis by The Economist, which called the 29-point swing comeback in polls by the Liberals as "one of the widest on record in any democracy",[9] noted that the two best predictors of the margin shift from Conservatives to Liberals were education and immigration: the Liberals gained in ridings with more university graduates and native-born voters, while the Conservatives benefited in ridings with more voters who were either foreign-born or did not hold degrees.[221] Religion was also a factor in certain results, where secular and Muslim voters tended to favour the Liberals while more heavily Jewish ridings swung to the Conservatives.[221]
According to a postmortem inquiry by the Toronto Star, the Liberals and Conservatives both experienced fortunate incidents and missteps. Members of the Liberal election team were estimating a final seat total of 181 to 190 seats, while the party's computer modelling was suggesting a lesser number.[222] While a Léger poll in February suggested a dead heat between the two parties if Carney became the Liberal leader, the Liberals were relieved when the Tories initially chose to focus their attacks on Carney's actions during his time in the private sector, as opposed to the more effective gambit in the last two weeks of the campaign of emphasizing the point that the Liberals "might be trying to pull a fast one on the country" by switching leaders.[223] The Liberals were slow to catch on to underlying shifts in voter sentiments until candidates were reporting from key races in the Greater Toronto Area, Alberta and BC that second-generation Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims and Italians (especially among younger men) were moving over to the Conservatives because of issues relating to public safety and immigration. Liberal attempts to address the issue chose to focus on gun control, an area voters did not consider relevant.[223] On the other side, many Conservatives believed that the tone set by Poilievre turned off many traditional supporters, and there was evidence that the significant lead the party enjoyed during the previous year was the result of "[mistaking] the poll numbers for our own popularity, as opposed to disgust with Justin Trudeau".[222] Morale among the party's backbenchers and grassroots was also affected by Poilievre's management of the campaign, and it was estimated that 110 riding nomination races were cancelled in favour of parachuting candidates directly in.[222] After election day, when it became apparent that both parties had come up short of their expected majority, the question posed by one Liberal insider was, "How do you end up winning Bay of Quinte but losing Brampton West?" Many observed that the resultant grouping of Liberal supporters was significantly influenced by the influx of NDP voters, Quebec nationalists and "white men over 50",[223] while Conservative efforts to attract younger voters, union members and immigrants proved to be successful.[222]
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party regained a leading position in this election, reversing previous polling in which it trailed behind the Conservative Party. With a vote share of 43.8%, it achieved its highest level of support since 1980 and marked its strongest performance since taking office in 2015. They won seats in every province (the only party to do so) and exceeded 40% of the popular vote in every province except Alberta and Saskatchewan. Although the party secured 169 seats—falling three seats short of the 172 needed for a majority—it successfully formed a minority government. The Liberals led in Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia, and the Atlantic provinces. Quebec saw the most notable gains, with the party winning 10 more seats than in 2021. The Liberals also performed well in the city of Toronto and the southern Greater Toronto Area (primarily in the more urban and affluent areas south of Highway 401), reclaiming a seat lost in last year's by-election, and produced dominant margins in the Ottawa region. However, their seat count in Ontario dropped by five compared to the previous election, in part due to losses in the York Region north of Toronto.[224] In Manitoba, the party won six seats, just one fewer than the Conservatives.[225][226]
Carney made a victory speech on election night after winning his seat of Nepean; he emphasized that regardless of which party Canadians supported, he would strive to be a prime minister for all. He said he would "always do my best to serve everyone who calls Canada home".[227] On international matters, Carney expressed serious concern regarding Trump. He criticized Trump for imposing tariffs and using trade pressure in attempts to weaken Canada's economy, while also publicly questioning the country's sovereignty.[227] He said, "There is someone trying to undermine our economy: Donald Trump."[228] In response to Trump's past remarks suggesting that Canada could become the 51st state of the U.S., Carney firmly declared, "The United States is not Canada. Canada will never, under any circumstance, become part of the United States."[227] Carney received congratulations from domestic leaders, including Premier Danielle Smith of Alberta, Premier Doug Ford of Ontario, Premier Scott Moe of Saskatchewan, and Mayor Olivia Chow of Toronto.[229]
Conservative Party
The Conservative Party achieved its highest vote share in decades in this election, garnering 41.3% of the vote—the highest for a conservative party since 1988 and the best result since the modern party's founding in 2003. They exceeded 35% of the popular vote in every province except for Quebec. The party secured 144 seats, second only to its majority government victory in 2011. Nevertheless, it still fell short of the Liberal Party in both vote share and seat count. Despite the overall electoral defeat, the Conservatives maintained a strong advantage in the three Prairie provinces. The party also made notable gains in areas traditionally less favourable to it, including the Greater Toronto Area in Ontario (particularly in York Region and Brampton), Vancouver Island and surrounding coastal regions in British Columbia, as well as several working-class regions such as Windsor and northern Ontario which political analyst Douglas Todd stated "helped shatter the myth that people who normally vote NDP would never vote for the Conservatives".[230][231] Polling conducted for CBC News by Kolosowski Strategies found that Conservative gains in the northern Greater Toronto Area were driven by concerns about affordability, crime and immigration policies.[232]
In total, the Conservatives gained 24 seats—seven more than the Liberals' gain of 16 seats. The largest increase was in Ontario, where they picked up 15 new seats, a third of which were in York Region; in British Columbia, they gained 5 seats, just one fewer than the Liberals. They also gained two seats in Newfoundland and Labrador and one seat in Quebec, while in Nova Scotia the party lost 2 seats and was left with only one. After the election results were announced, Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre delivered a concession speech in which he congratulated Prime Minister Mark Carney and stated he would work with all parties to end Donald Trump's tariffs. Poilievre also emphasized that he would continue to serve as Conservative Party leader, and that the party would remain an effective opposition in Parliament, focusing on issues such as the economy, cost of living, housing, and defending the interests of Canadians.[233] Shortly after the speech, it was confirmed that he had been defeated by Liberal Party candidate Bruce Fanjoy in the riding of Carleton.[234] Voters in the area told the CBC that Poilievre's support for the 2022 Freedom Convoy protest which occupied part of the city core and his pledge to reduce the public service contributed to his loss in the riding.[235] Calls from provincial conservative premiers for Poilievre to resign as Conservative leader grew following the election result.[236][237]
A few days after election day, Conservative MP Damien Kurek, who was re-elected with over 80% of the vote in the Alberta riding of Battle River—Crowfoot, one of the party's safest ridings, announced his intention to resign in order to allow Poilievre to run in the succeeding by-election.[238] Kurek will have to wait 30 days after the results of the election are published in the Canada Gazette in order to resign, and plans to run in Battle River-Crowfoot in the upcoming general election[239] He subsequently resigned on June 17.[240]
While Poilievre holds no seat in the House of Commons, he is ineligible to continue as leader of the Opposition. This resulted in former Conservative leader Andrew Scheer being appointed interim leader of the Opposition.[241][242][243]
Bloc Québécois
In this election, the Bloc Québécois garnered only 6.3% of the national vote, with support in Quebec dropping to 27.7%. The party won 22 seats, ten fewer than in the previous election, marking its third-worst performance in history. The Bloc failed to consolidate its advantage in Quebec, with the Liberal Party capturing key constituencies. Several prominent members, including the party's House Leader Alain Therrien, were defeated.
After learning the results of the election, party leader Yves-François Blanchet admitted his party had suffered a setback and accepted the voters' decision. He acknowledged the party's losses but pointed to external factors, such as Trump's tariff policies and controversial remarks about Canada, as well as the Liberal Party's perceived use of fear-based campaigning, as contributing to the defeat. Blanchet stressed that the Bloc would remain committed to standing up for Quebec's interests and called for cooperation among all parties in Parliament to meet the country's shared responsibilities. He added that the Bloc would continue to play a constructive role in Parliament to ensure Québécois voices are not sidelined at the federal level. He also noted that the seats won by the Bloc place it in a position of influence in a minority government. He said, "We will speak up for Quebec clearly and confidently, but we will do so in a way that fosters unity rather than division."[244][245]
New Democratic Party
In this election, the New Democratic Party secured only 6.3% of the national vote and won just 7 seats, marking the worst result in its history. They received slightly fewer votes than even the Bloc Quebecois, despite running nationally as opposed to only in Quebec. Compared to the previous election, the party lost 18 seats — 7 to the Liberals and 10 to the Conservatives (with one seat dissolved) — and its vote share dropped significantly. In no province did they finish higher than third in the popular vote or receive more than 13% of such vote. Party leader Jagmeet Singh also failed to win re-election (finishing third place in his riding of Burnaby Central). Falling short of the 12-seat threshold, the NDP lost its official party status for the first time since 1993. After the election, certain observers and party insiders questioned the allocation of resources to crucial ridings in the final days of the campaign, noting that eight others had closer races than Burnaby Central and thus better chances for victory.[246]
On election night, having been defeated in Burnaby Central and with the NDP at risk of losing official party status, Jagmeet Singh announced that he would resign as party leader once an interim leader was chosen in advance of the next leadership election.[247] Singh confirmed that he had informed the party's senior leadership of his incoming resignation and said he would assist with the transition until an interim leader is chosen.[248] In a candid statement, Singh acknowledged the outcome as disappointing but emphasized that it was part of the democratic process. As party leader, he stated he must take political responsibility for the result. Singh said, "Leading the New Democratic Party has been one of the greatest honours of my life, although today's result is difficult to accept, my belief in this party remains unshaken. I believe it is time for new voices and new energy to take us into the next chapter."[249] Don Davies was selected as interim leader on May 5, 2025.[250]
Green Party
The Green Party won only one seat, one less than the previous election, receiving the party's worst popular vote since 2000. Its national vote share was 1.2%, a drop of 1.13 percentage points from 2.33% in 2021. The only seat secured was in the British Columbia riding of Saanich—Gulf Islands, where party leader Elizabeth May was re-elected. Meanwhile, co-leader Jonathan Pedneault failed to win in the riding of Outremont, coming in at 5th place.
After the election results were announced, Green Party co-leader May expressed her gratitude for once again earning the trust and support of voters in her riding, and voiced her hopefulness about the party retaining a seat in the context of a minority government. She acknowledged that although the Green Party's overall national performance was disappointing, with a historically low share of the vote, she remains committed to the importance of environmental and social justice issues and will continue to advocate for them in Parliament. May emphasized that an individual victory is not an endpoint, but part of a broader effort to advance national environmental policy and democratic reform. She also expressed openness to taking on a more active role in Parliament in the future.[251]
On the other hand, Green Party co-leader Pedneault expressed regret that the party had won only one seat and failed to gain broad support from voters. He acknowledged that the Greens had not achieved the breakthrough they had hoped for in this election. Pedneault stated that, as co-leader, he bore political responsibility for the outcome and thus chose to resign from his leadership position. He emphasized that this decision was not driven by personal disappointment, but by a commitment to responsible party leadership.[252]
International reactions
Carney received calls and messages of congratulations from world leaders, including Prime Minister Keir Starmer of the United Kingdom, President Donald Trump of the United States, President Emmanuel Macron of France, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India.[253][254]
World leaders
- Australia: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese congratulated Carney on his election victory, expressing a commitment to strengthening the longstanding friendship between Australia and Canada. He emphasized the importance of continued cooperation amid global uncertainty for the benefit of both nations' citizens.[255]
- Brazil: President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva congratulated Carney on his election victory and said it intends to deepen cooperation "in areas of mutual interest, such as the promotion and protection of human rights and the fight against climate change". He signaled an interest in taking a step forward in a possible agreement between Mercosur and the Canadian government.[256]
- Croatia: Prime Minister Andrej Plenković congratulated Carney on election victory. He said: "I look forward to our future cooperation and strengthening of relations. We continue to stand together as NATO allies in confronting joint challenges and defending shared values."[257]
- Czech Republic: Prime Minister Petr Fiala congratulated Carney on his electoral victory, emphasizing that Canada is a key partner and ally of the Czech Republic. He expressed eagerness to strengthen bilateral cooperation, both within NATO and in the broader context of Canada–EU relations.[258]
- Denmark: Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen congratulated Carney on his victory in yesterday's election.[259]
- Estonia: President Alar Karis congratulated Carney on his election victory. He said: "Estonia deeply values our strong friendship & Canada's leadership in advancing international security & democratic values. I look forward to building strong cooperation bilaterally & within the transatlantic community."[260] Prime Minister Kristen Michal also congratulated Carney and the Liberal Party.[261]
- Finland: Prime Minister Petteri Orpo congratulated Carney on his election as Prime Minister of Canada and expressed his hopes for continued close cooperation between Finland and Canada. He also extended his best wishes to Carney in his new role.[262]
- France: President Emmanuel Macron congratulated Carney on his victory, praising his leadership as a symbol of a strong Canada amid global challenges. Macron expressed enthusiasm for deepening the Franco-Canadian friendship and looked forward to working closely "elbow to elbow" with the new Canadian leader.[263]
- Germany: Chancellor Olaf Scholz congratulated Carney on the election victory and emphasised that they share mutual values.[264]
- Iceland: Prime Minister Kristrún Frostadóttir congratulated Carney on the election victory and said that Iceland considers Canada to be one its closest allies.[265]
- India: Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Carney and the Liberal Party on their election victory. Highlighting the shared democratic values, rule of law, and strong people-to-people ties between India and Canada, Modi expressed his intention to work with Carney to strengthen bilateral relations and expand opportunities for both nations.[266]
- Italy: Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni congratulated Carney[267]
- Ireland: Prime Minister Micheál Martin congratulated Carney and the Liberal Party on his election victory.[268]
- Japan: Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba congratulated Carney and said he looked forward to working closely with Carney to "enhance our strategic partnership and jointly promote a free and open Indo-Pacific."[269]
- Latvia: President Edgars Rinkēvičs congratulated Carney on his electoral victory and continuing as Prime Minister of Canada. He said: "Latvia and Canada enjoy strong bilateral relations. We are particularly grateful for Canada's leadership of NATO Multinational brigade in Latvia. Look forward to continue."[270] Prime Minister Evika Siliņa congratulated Carney on the remarkable win at the Canadian elections.[271]
- Lithuania: President Gitanas Nauseda and Prime Minister Gintautas Paluckas congratulated Carney on his election victory.[272][273]
- Luxembourg: Prime Minister Luc Frieden congratulated Carney on his victory in the election and hoped to co-operate further.[274]
- Malaysia: Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim congratulated Carney on his victory in the election. He expressed readiness to work closely with Carney to strengthen bilateral relations, particularly through the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Anwar also highlighted that the election marks a new beginning for Canada, reaffirming the country's commitment to independence, resilience and principled leadership in uncertain times.[275]
- Netherlands: Prime Minister Dick Schoof congratulated Carney on winning the Canadian elections and continuing as prime minister.[276]
- New Zealand: Prime Minister Christopher Luxon congratulated Carney on his election result. He said: "There's so much New Zealand and Canada share in common, with a lot more we can do together. I look forward to working with you as you get down to business."[277]
- Norway: Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre congratulated Carney on winning the election. He said that "Canada is a close friend, partner and ally. We will continue our cooperation, especially on security, Ukraine, Arctic and climate issues. We are strongest when we are united."[278]
- Sweden: Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson congratulated Carney for being elected Prime Minister of Canada and said: "Sweden and Canada are great friends and allies, and I look forward to further develop the excellent cooperation."[279]
- Taiwan: President Lai Ching-te extended congratulations to Carney and the Liberal Party on their election victory. He expressed appreciation for Canada's support and looked forward to strengthening bilateral ties through enhanced cooperation in technology, cultural exchange, and other areas.[280]
- Ukraine: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy congratulated Carney and the Liberal Party on their electoral victory, expressing deep appreciation for Canada's steadfast support. He acknowledged Canada's leadership in providing military, financial, and humanitarian aid, as well as imposing sanctions on Russia. Zelenskyy voiced confidence in an even stronger partnership grounded in shared values of peace, justice, and security.[281]
- United Kingdom: Prime Minister Keir Starmer congratulated Carney on his election victory and emphasized the importance of strengthening the economic relationship between the UK and Canada, highlighting shared goals of security and prosperity for working people.[282]
- United States: President Donald Trump congratulated Carney on his victory, with the two leaders agreeing to meet in the near future.[283][284]
Organizations
- European Union: President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen congratulated Carney and the Liberal Party on their election victory.[285]
- NATO: Secretary General Mark Rutte congratulated Carney on the election win. Rutte said that Canada is a valued member of NATO and he look forward to working together to build a stronger and fairer alliance, investing more in defence amd ramping up industrial production.[286]
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Student vote results
Student votes are mock elections that run parallel to actual elections, in which students not of voting age participate. They are administered by Student Vote Canada. These are for educational purposes and do not count towards the results.[287] The Conservatives won a minority government in the poll.[288]
| 162 | 149 | 17 | 13 | 2 |
| Conservative | Liberal | Bloc | NDP | Green |
See also
- 1911 Canadian federal election (Canada–US relations elections)
- 1988 Canadian federal election (Canada–US relations elections)
- 2025 Australian federal election (held within the same week and saw a similar increase in support for the incumbent government in opposition to Trump and also led to the Opposition Leader losing their seat)
- 2025 Singaporean general election (held within the same week and saw a similar increase in support for the incumbent government in response to Trump's tariff and also led to one of two sitting opposition parties to lose their parliamentary representation)
- Candidates of the 2025 Canadian federal election
- List of Canadian federal general elections
- 2025 Canadian federal election in Alberta
- 2025 Canadian federal election in British Columbia
- 2025 Canadian federal election in Manitoba
- 2025 Canadian federal election in New Brunswick
- 2025 Canadian federal election in Newfoundland and Labrador
- 2025 Canadian federal election in Nova Scotia
- 2025 Canadian federal election in Ontario
- 2025 Canadian federal election in Prince Edward Island
- 2025 Canadian federal election in Quebec
- 2025 Canadian federal election in Saskatchewan
- 2025 Canadian federal election in the territories
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Notes
- Burnaby South, which Singh represented before the election, was abolished during the 2022 Canadian federal electoral redistribution; Singh ran for re-election in the new riding of Burnaby Central, which encompasses much of the same territory.
- While formal results showed the Liberals winning 160 seats, those totals include Kevin Vuong, who was disavowed during the campaign by his party, and sat as an Independent in the House of Commons from 2021 to 2025.
- Under the 2021 debate rules, the party would have qualified by having received over 4% (4.94%) of the vote in the 2021 election.[179] This criterion was removed in the 2025 eligibility rules.
- Despite having two co-leaders, the Greens chose Pedneault to represent them in all debates and interviews.[186]
- Invited on April 1. Invitation rescinded on April 16 due to the party running candidates in fewer than 90% of ridings.[178]
- In the riding of Ponoka—Didsbury, Zarnab Zafar was endorsed by the Liberal Party, but, due to a clerical error with Elections Canada, her party affiliation was not registered.[116]
- In the riding of Québec Centre, Conservative candidate Chanie Thériault had her paperwork rejected by Elections Canada; the party did not specify the reason(s).[116]
- In the riding of South Shore—St. Margarets, NDP candidate Brendan Mosher dropped out of the race for personal reasons. Hayden Henderson was endorsed by the NDP, but was listed on the ballot as an Independent candidate.[116][119]
- 159 Independents, 18 No Affiliation; 83 (74 Ind., 9 NA) participated in the Longest Ballot Committee protest in the riding of Carleton.
- At that time, their predecessor party, the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada (then led by Brian Mulroney) was active. Moreover, this remains true even when combining the Progressive Conservative and Reform/Canadian Alliance vote shares from 1993 through 2000.
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References
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