Liberal leadership contender Karina Gould says she’s going to wait to gauge the state of the Canada-U.S. relationship when the race to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is determined in mid-March, before deciding whether to call an early election, if she wins the contest.
“I am going to see where the country is at that moment in time, because if we are in the midst of a trade war with the United States, we need to make sure that the entire energy of the government is focused on defending Canada and defending Canadians,” Gould told CTV’s Question Period host Vassy Kapelos in an interview airing Sunday. “So I’m going to want to see where we are on March 10.”
There’s been widespread speculation that the Liberal leadership race’s winner — who will also become prime minister — could be angling to seize on the party’s current momentum in the polls and call a snap election soon after.
When pressed on the argument that a full-blown trade war with the U.S. could reinforce the need for any government to have a clear mandate from voters, Gould said the “responsible thing to do” is wait and evaluate once the next series of deadlines from the commander-in-chief come to pass.
On March 4, Trump’s 30-day reprieve on across-the-board tariffs of 25 per cent on Canadian imports and 10 per cent on Canadian energy, is set to expire. Then, Trump says other levies are on the way, such as new tariffs on steel and aluminum, and “the big one,” reciprocal tariffs, in early April.
When pressed again on the fact it is only Liberals who would be choosing her to be the next prime minister, not Canadians as a whole, Gould said: “I am an elected member of Parliament.”
“I do have a seat in the House of Commons, so I can actually sit there when I become prime minister,” Gould said, referencing her Liberal leadership race opponent and presumptive frontrunner in the contest, Mark Carney.
Carney — the former governor of the Bank of Canada — has never been elected to office, and if he wins the Liberal leadership, would not be able to participate in Parliament.
“There will be an election at some point this year,” Gould said. “We have a fixed election date in October.”
“If we need to have a massive support program for Canadians, because we have hundreds of thousands of people who have lost their job, or we need to ensure businesses can keep their doors open, so that when we do win a potential trade war, Canadians have good jobs to go back to, that’s the decision that I’m going to make at the time,” she also said. “So, I’m not going to say that I’m going to call an early election, or wait until later, until I know exactly where we stand on March.”
Meanwhile, Carney is currently well ahead in the race when it comes to fundraising, high-profile endorsements and in the polls.
Carney has never specifically ruled out calling a snap election shortly after the leadership race ends, if he becomes prime minister, when asked by reporters throughout the campaign.
The NDP, for its part, sent out an internal memo to its candidates earlier this month, urging them to prepare for an election “as early as March 10.”
The four Liberal leadership hopefuls are set to square off in two debates this week, first in French on Monday, then in English on Tuesday, both in Montreal.
The Liberals will select their next leader on March 9.
Gould in her interview also discussed several of her policy positions, including setting a path toward a universal basic income and plans to increase federal corporate taxes.
Gould’s campaign has focused largely on affordability, pledging to temporarily reduce the GST, and eliminate it entirely for some products, among other promises.
You can watch Gould’s full interview on Question Period this Sunday at 11ET/8PT on CTV.
