Summary of the day so far
Canadians across the country are heading to the polls to cast their votes to decide who will form the next government. The two clear frontrunners are the Liberal party, led by Mark Carney, and the Conservative party, led by Pierre Poilievre. Here’s a recap of the latest developments:
Polls have opened nationwide with the last polls expected to close at 10pm EDT. Preliminary results are likely to come in tonight or early Tuesday morning.
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A record 7.3 million people had already cast their ballots in advance polls before election day, according to Elections Canada. Canada has 28.9 million eligible voters.
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The Liberals are the “clear frontrunners” of this election with a 83% chance of victory, according to Canada Sports Betting. The Conservative party is still trailing behind with a 23% chance of winning, it says.
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Donald Trump’s aggressive posture towards Canada has scrambled the stakes of the election. Until February, the Conservatives enjoyed a 25 point lead over the Liberals.
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Trump once again threatened Canada’s independent sovereignty on the eve of the election, describing the border between the two nations as an “artificially drawn line from many years ago”. In a Truth Social post, the US president urged Canada to become the 51st state of the US, claiming it would bring tax cuts, and increased military power.
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Poilievre responded to Trump’s threat by urging him to “stay out of our election”. “Canada will always be proud, sovereign and independent and we will NEVER be the 51st state,” the Conservative leader posted on X.
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Carney, also in an apparent reference to Trump, said “this is Canada – and we decide what happens here.” In a video posted on X, the Liberal leader referred to a “crisis” in the US and reminded voters of the threat to Canada’s economy posed by Trump’s tariffs.
Key events
Election day in Canada falls on a day of mourning after eleven people were killed and dozens of others injured when a driver ploughed a car into a crowd at a street festival in Vancouver on Saturday evening.
The festival, known as Lapu-Lapu Day, is also widely celebrated in the Philippines and honors Datu Lapu-Lapu, the Filipino chieftain who famously defeated Spanish forces in 1521.
Many across Canada have set aside time today not only to vote, but to mourn and visit makeshift memorials in honor of the victims.
The Public and Private Workers of Canada (PPWC), a trade union based in British Columbia, urged people to “get out and vote” as it says the rights of Canadian workers are “under threat”.
“Big corporations and wealthy elites are working harder than ever to influence policy in their favour, often at the expense of working families,” the statement says. “If we stay silent, we risk losing the gains we fought so hard to achieve. If we act, we can elect leaders who will invest in social services and good paying jobs, strengthen labour laws, tackle the climate crisis, and ensure dignity for every worker.
“The stakes are too high for any of us to sit this election out.”
Prime minister Mark Carney is posting hockey-themed campaign videos on social media, including using the phrase “Elbows up”, a hockey reference describing players using their his elbows to defend themselves and now used to as a pro-Canada sovereignty slogan, as well as a post saying: “Today, we leave everything on the ice.”
He also included a video featuring actor Mike Myers in an ice hockey rink.
Liberal leader Mark Carney has been spotted casting his vote at a polling station in Ottawa, Ontario.
Carney and his wife, Diana Fox Carney, voted in the Ottawa-Vanier-Gloucester riding where they are resident.
Carney is not running in that riding but instead he is running in Nepean, another suburban Ottawa riding.
New Democratic party leader Jagmeet Singh’s own riding of Burnaby Central could be at risk, according to reports.
Polls suggest Singh is in a three-way race to hold on to his seat, with polls projecting a Liberal victory in the riding, according to the Canadian press.
New Democratic party leader Jagmeet Singh has also responded to Donald Trump’s comments this morning, after the US president once again threatened Canada’s independent sovereignty.
“I hear Trump has something to say about our election,” Singh wrote in a post on X. “He doesn’t choose our future. We do.”
He urged voters to “protect what makes Canada, Canada”.
Here are some of the latest images from Canada, where voters have been casting their ballots across the country to decide who will form the next government.
What have the key players promised?
There is little daylight between Liberal leader Mark Carney and Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre on issues of Canada’s relationship with the United States.
Both have rejected the idea Canada would ever cede its sovereignty. But while both acknowledge a cost of living crisis and housing unaffordability have left Canadians feeling worse off, they have divergent solutions.
Poilievre has promised to cut regulations, diminish the role and size of government in order to facilitate homebuilding. Carney, in contrast, is leaning government as a key figure in any wide-scale building effort.
Poilievre, a brash populist and seasoned parliamentary “attack dog”, has inspired a fervent response from his supporters, who say he has given a voice to those who feel ignored and mocked by political elites.
The Tory leader has told supporters he will crack down on crime, toughening sentences for the worst offenders in a move that he admits would breach the country’s charter of rights and freedoms – but promising to use an arcane constitutional mechanism that permits him to do so anyway.
Carney has largely run a campaign on his economic and business credentials, tacking the party towards the political centre in an attempt to lure in disaffected voters from both sides of the political aisle.
Conservatives have used his CV in their attacks, alleging he used tax loopholes when chair of the investment firm Brookfield. Carney has also faced criticism from the Conservatives for adopting their own policy proposals, including removing a controversial carbon tax.
Who are the main candidates?
Five political parties were represented in parliament before the election was called:
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Liberal party, led by Mark Carney
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Conservative party, led by Pierre Poilievre
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Bloc Québécois, led by Yves-François Blanchet
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New Democratic party, led by Jagmeet Singh
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Green party, led by Elizabeth May
But this election is essentially a two-man race between Carney, the current prime minister, and Pollievre.
Carney, 60, is the former governor of both the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England. He became prime minister, replacing Justin Trudeau, after winning the race to lead the country’s federal Liberal party last month.
Poilievre, 45, has taken his Conservative party from the conventional right to the populist flank. He has been compared to Donald Trump, promising to put Canada first by rebuilding the military and by taking back control of Canada’s borders.
Who is eligible to vote?
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Canadian citizens who are at least 18 years old are eligible to vote today
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Voters must vote at their assigned polling station. To find out where they can vote, they can check their voter information card
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Voters must be registered. Those who are not registered can register at their polling station when they go to vote.
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Voters must prove their identity and address – here are three options to do so
How does Canada’s federal election system work?
Canada’s federal election is really 343 separate elections across the country held simultaneously.
Those parliamentary elections in Canada are normally held every four years and under federal law, an election is required by October 2025 at the latest.
Using a parliamentary system stems from the British or Westminster tradition, the party with the most seats typically forms government.
If either the Liberals or the Conservatives win 172 or more seats, they will have a majority government. Anything less than that and they will be required to work with other parties to pass legislation.
Kate McCusker
The unfailing politeness of Canadians is a national character trait recognised the world over, but expats living in the UK who were readying their postal ballots for the elections were in no mood for niceties.
“If you mess with Canadians, we’ll hit back,” said Sarah Helppi, a 44-year-old Toronto native turned Londoner who spoke to the Guardian as she posted her ballot for what she called the most important Canadian vote in her lifetime.
For Helppi, hitting back against Donald Trump’s import tariffs and threats to annex what he has derisively called the “51st state” meant casting a postal vote in Canada for the first time in the 12 years she has lived in the UK.
“I feel united with the Canadian people in trying to find their way out of this,” she said.
We want someone to make the hard decisions about how to re-engineer the economy away from the US, and to me that person is [Mark] Carney.
“I think it’s quite clear that it’s going to be between Carney and [Pierre] Poilievre this time around,” said Nathalie Cook, a 29-year-old primary school teacher from Ottawa living in London. “It definitely feels like the most important election I’ve ever voted in.”
Some voters in Windsor, Ontario, are being redirected to a new polling location after a fire forced the shutdown of a recreation centre that was serving as a federal election polling station.
Fire crews were called to WFCU Centre earlier on Monday and people inside were evacuated, Windsor fire and rescue services said. The fire has since been brought under control.
Election officials have redirected Windsor-Tecumseh-Lakeshore voters to St Joseph’s high school nearby.
