Liberal leadership race: A look at the potential candidates

OTTAWA — The federal Liberals are running their first leadership race in more than a decade to replace the departing Justin Trudeau.

Candidates must declare by Jan. 23 and pay a $350,000 fee to enter the race. The winner will be named on March 9.

Here’s a quick look at who’s in and who’s out.

Who’s in

Chandra Arya

Arya became the first current member of the Liberal caucus to announce his candidacy just four days after Trudeau’s announcement. Arya — first elected as an MP in an Ottawa suburb in 2015 — has said he does not believe he needs to speak French to become prime minister, came out against Trudeau’s carbon pricing system and wants to abolish the monarchy.

Frank Baylis

A former Montreal Liberal MP and businessman, Baylis was the first to announce his candidacy. Baylis ran in 2015 under the Liberal banner but chose not to run again in 2019. He sold his company Baylis Medical Company Inc. to Boston Scientific Corporation in 2022 for $1.75 billion.

Who’s considering

Chrystia Freeland

The former finance minister, who has been a Liberal MP since 2013, is expected to mount a bid for the party leadership. She played a key role in Trudeau’s government until the two had a falling out in December and she quit cabinet when faced with being reassigned.

Mark Carney

The former governor of the Bank of Canada and Bank of England is widely expected to announce his decision on a leadership bid this week. Liberal organizers have sought to bring the star technocrat from the world of global finance into the party fold for the past decade. Over the summer, he took on a role advising the party on economics.

Karina Gould

The 37-year-old millennial is known for going head-to-head with Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre in Parliament. She was first elected in 2015 and later became the first cabinet minister to have a baby while in office and take maternity leave. Within the party, she is known for getting the national child care program over the finish line.

Jonathan Wilkinson

The energy minister and B.C. MP was a clean tech CEO before running for office. He has played a big part in driving the Liberals’ climate policies and was tasked with trying to bring Alberta on board for some less popular measures, including national regulations to end the use of fossil fuels as a source of electricity. He has said he is talking his decision over with family and trying to determine whether he has enough support to enter the race competitively.

Jaime Battiste

The Cape Breton MP and chair of the Liberal Indigenous caucus became the first Mi’kmaw lawmaker elected to Parliament in 2019. Battiste expressed interested in running on Jan. 13, saying he’s putting together an exploratory committee to help him prepare a bid to become the first Indigenous prime minister.

Who’s out

François-Philippe Champagne

The industry minister said Tuesday instead of running he will focus on ensuring the government is ready to protect Canadian industry from the trade threats posed by incoming U.S. president Donald Trump. Champagne, the MP for Saint-Maurice—Champlain since 2015, said “it was probably the most difficult decision of my life, but I think it was the right one at the right time.”

Christy Clark

The former B.C. Liberal premier withdrew herself from contention Tuesday, days after her team had signalled she was very close to declaring publicly she was running. She said there was not enough time to mount a successful campaign, and that her French was not good enough to connect with francophone Canadians. The decision also came days after she was forced to backtrack from her claim that she was never a member of the Conservative party.

Steven MacKinnon

The minister of labour, first elected to represent Gatineau, Que, in 2015, indicated interest in the party’s top job and has spoken about the importance of having a bilingual leader. MacKinnon bowed out of the running on Jan. 12, saying that the time frame is too short to mount a campaign.

Anita Anand

Transport minister and MP for Oakville, Ont., Anand was once a rising star in cabinet with leadership aspirations. She declined to enter the race on Jan. 11 and also announced she will not seek re-election in her riding.

Mélanie Joly

The foreign affairs minister dropped out of the race on Jan. 10. She said that while she wants to become the first woman to lead the Liberal party, she decided it’s a bad time to leave her job as Canada’s top diplomat as the country faces an existential tariff threat from Trump.

Dominic LeBlanc

LeBlanc is a longtime friend and ally of Trudeau who jumped into the finance portfolio when Freeland suddenly quit. He dashed the hopes of many of his fellow caucus mates on Jan. 8 by ruling out a leadership bid, citing the trade threats posed by the Trump administration.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 14, 2025.

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press