TORONTO — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney secured a parliamentary majority for his Liberal government after key by-election wins, strengthening his mandate until 2029 and bolstering Canada’s position to respond more decisively to trade tensions and political pressure from US President Donald Trump. Carney’s Liberals won the most seats in elections a year ago, but fell just short of a majority. Voters cast ballots for three vacant seats of the 343 districts represented in parliament. In Toronto, Liberal candidate Danielle Martin won the election for the district of University Rosedale and Liberal Doly Begum won the district of Scarborough Southwest. The result for a Quebec district was expected later. Carney won Canada’s election last year, fueled by public anger over Trump’s annexation threats, and he has vowed to reduce Canada’s reliance on the US. Since then, five defections from opposition parties, including four from the main opposition Conservative party, put Carney’s Liberals on the cusp of the majority. One of those defectors referenced Carney’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as helping in his decision. In that speech, Carney condemned economic coercion by great powers against smaller countries and received widespread praise for his remarks. Carney took the office with no political experience and earned global recognition for his efforts to band middle-power nations together. Carney has solidified his grip on leading Canada until at least 2029, when national elections are due to be held next. The last time a federal government had a majority in Parliament was under Justin Trudeau from 2015 to 2019. Carney congratulated the new Liberal lawmakers Martin and Doly Begum on X, saying both would make Canada “stronger.” “As of tonight, Mark Carney and our entire incredible Liberal team have earned an even more powerful mandate to continue building a better Canada,” Martin said. Daniel Beland, a political-science professor at McGill University in Montreal, said the Liberals also had a shot at winning the Quebec seat. Beland said the deterioration of Canada-US relations under the second Trump presidency has convinced many Canadians, including people who do not identify as Liberal, to rally behind the prime minister. He has improved his party’s fortunes since last year’s election by sticking firmly to a message focused on Trump, arguing the US leader has upended the world order and Canada needs to take bold action in response. Carney, the former head of the Bank of England as well as Canada’s central bank, has moved the Liberals to the center-right since replacing Justin Trudeau as prime minister in 2025. The Liberal majority and the recent defections are another blow to Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, who lost the previous national election last year and even his own seat. He has since rejoined Parliament. — Agencies
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