On March 9, the Liberal Party of Canada will choose its next leader from five candidates, with former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney and former deputy prime minister and finance minister Chrystia Freeland as frontrunners.
As endorsements and support from members of the Liberal caucus continue to roll in, the majority of Cabinet ministers are throwing their support behind Carney — as are most of the Liberal MPs in Ottawa.
Here is who the local Liberal representatives are endorsing for the Liberal leadership:
Kanata-Carleton
Jenna Sudds, MP for Kanata-Carleton and Minister of Families, Children and Social Development has endorsed Carney in a video posted to social media on Jan. 27.
“I’m excited about a future where Mark Carney is the leader of the Liberal Party and our prime minister,” she said. “He is a proven leader and economist who I trust to help make life more affordable while balancing the demands of climate change, AI, technological change, and the looming threat of tariffs from our largest trading partner.”
Nepean
Nepean MP Chandra Arya originally through his own name in the hat for leadership before the Liberal Party of Canada barred him from participating. He has not endorsed another candidate.
Orléans
Marie-France Lalonde, MP for Orléans, endorsed Carney in a statement issued on Feb. 6.
“Our next leader must possess the experience, vision, and confidence to tackle these issues head-on and safeguard Canada’s future,” she said.
“His leadership during the 2008 financial crisis was instrumental in guiding Canada through uncertain times, ensuring our economy not only endured but emerged stronger,” the statement continued. “He also has the experience working alongside world leaders, and I am confident that he will provide Canada with the steady, trusted leadership we need on the international stage.”
Ottawa Centre
Ottawa Centre MP Yasir Naqvi will not be offering his endorsement to candidates as he sits on the Leadership Expense Committee and will remain “strictly neutral” throughout the leadership race, he said in a statement on Jan. 10.
Ottawa South
Public Safety Minister and Ottawa South MP David McGuinty announced over the weekend that he is supporting Carney in the race, posting a picture with Carney on X (formerly Twitter) that was captioned, “I’m in!”
Ottawa-Vanier
Mona Fortier, MP for Ottawa-Vanier, has not made any public endorsements.
Ottawa West-Nepean
Anita Vandenbeld, Ottawa West-Nepean MP, is one of the few to endorse Freeland. She has not released an official statement but is reposting and sharing Freeland’s campaign messaging across her channels.
In total, Carney now boasts the support of 82 Liberal MPs, while Freeland only has the backing of 25 of her caucus colleagues. Former cabinet minister Karina Gould has been endorsed by Liberal MPs Pam Damoff and Lisa Hepfner, while neither Frank Baylis nor Ruby Dhalla has picked up a caucus endorsement.
Only six ministers remain undeclared.
With files from Davis Legree
