Freeland, a former Canadian finance minister, is vying to succeed Trudeau

Chrystia Freeland, a former Canadian finance minister, declared Friday that she will run to succeed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as head of the ruling Liberal Party.

After defying Trudeau’s calls for increased expenditure and writing a letter criticizing his style of governance, Freeland, who had been one of his closest political friends for ten years, resigned last month.

Liberal lawmakers, who were already dissatisfied with the party’s dismal polling performance during nine years in office and with the general discontent among voters over rising costs and a housing problem, were outraged by her abrupt departure.

Trudeau was compelled by the mutiny to declare that he would resign when the party selected a successor. He will remain in office until the inauguration of the next leader on March 9.

In a post on X, Freeland said, “I’m running to fight for Canada,” adding that Sunday will mark the official start of her campaign.

Given that surveys indicate the official opposition Conservatives would destroy the Liberals, Trudeau’s successor is unlikely to hold government for very long. The next election may take place as early as May, but it must take place by October 20.

Considering how closely she collaborated with Trudeau following the Liberals’ takeover in November 2015 and how frequently she publicly supported him, Freeland, 56, will have to present herself as distinct from him.

Mark Carney, a former governor of the Bank of Canada who has never served in government and presents himself as an outsider, is probably going to be her biggest opponent. On Thursday, he declared his intention to run.

In his role as finance minister since August 2020, Freeland contributed to the development of the government’s multibillion-dollar pandemic-fighting social expenditure plan.

After then-President Donald Trump attempted to sabotage a trilateral trade agreement with the United States and Mexico, she headed the Canadian team that successfully renegotiated it. She had previously served as foreign minister.

When she first joined the administration in November 2015, she was the minister of commerce.

Freeland worked as a journalist and in top editorial positions for a number of media outlets before going into politics in 2013. These included Reuters, where she worked from 2010 to 2013, the Financial Times, and the Globe and Mail.