Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly to endorse Mark Carney for Liberal leader: source

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly will endorse Mark Carney in the race for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada, Radio-Canada has learned.

Joly will make the announcement in a written statement on Sunday, according to a source with knowledge of the decision who spoke to Radio-Canada.

This development comes on the same day that former finance minister Chrystia Freeland will deliver the first speech of her campaign to become Liberal leader. Her official campaign launch is scheduled for mid-day at an event in her Toronto riding.

Radio-Canada’s source stressed that U.S. president-elect Donald Trump’s return to power was a determining factor in the minister’s decision to back Carney. Joly believes the former governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England is best suited to deal with the threat of a trade dispute with the United States.

The source pointed to Carney’s experience managing the 2008 financial crisis and the economic challenges that arose after the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union.

As for the timing of Joly’s announcement, the foreign affairs minister was keen to make it before Trump’s swearing-in ceremony in Washington on Monday.

Within Joly’s circle, there are doubts about Freeland’s ability to distance herself enough from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s legacy, having been his finance minister for over four years.

Carney’s promise to tighten up public finances is “fundamental” in Joly’s view, according to the source with knowledge of her decision. At Carney’s campaign launch last Thursday, he declared the federal government “spends too much but invests too little.”

Organization and strategy

The foreign affairs minister’s decision to back Carney, a former Bank of Canada governor, is a lift in Quebec, since Joly has an extensive network within the Liberal Party’s base in the province.

The source estimates that hundreds of volunteers and organizers in Quebec will be actively supporting Carney’s campaign. Overall, fieldwork will be crucial in the leadership contest since every riding in Canada will have equal weight in electing the next Liberal leader.

Joly has been able to develop her network within the Liberal Party since she co-chaired the 2021 election campaign with former minister Navdeep Bains. According to information obtained by Radio-Canada, Bains is also helping Carney’s team mobilize in the Greater Toronto Area.

Joly intends to advise Carney and help him with his organization in Quebec, though her priority will remain handling the Canada-U.S. file, the source said.

Freeland has other ministers on her side, including Health Minister Mark Holland and Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier.

“Chrystia Freeland has always had Quebec and the French language at heart,” Lebouthillier said in a social media post. “Having worked with her for over nine years, I can tell you she is the best person to embody the change we need at the Liberal Party of Canada.”

Freeland gave her first interview since announcing her candidacy to a French-language media outlet on Friday. So far, Carney has not done an interview in French.

Carney has also been publicly endorsed by Emergency Preparedness Minister Harjit Sajjan.

Government House leader Karina Gould officially launched her leadership campaign Sunday morning at an event in her home town of Burlington, Ontario.

MP Chandra Arya, who represents the Ottawa-area riding of Nepean; former Montreal MP and businessman Frank Baylis; and MP Jaime Battiste, who represents the Nova Scotia riding of Sydney—Victoria, have all declared they’re running for the leadership.

Candidates will have to declare their intention to run and pay the entry fee of $350,000 by Jan. 23. People can register with the party to vote in the leadership race up until Jan. 27.