Mark Carney Takes Office as Canadian Prime Minister, Swearing-in of New Cabinet Members

Mark Carney was appointed as Canada’s 24th prime minister by Governor General Mary Simon this morning at a ceremony at Rideau Hall.

Carney, a former governor of the central banks of Canada and England, was appointed to the highest office by virtue of his win in the Liberal leadership race, which concluded on March 9.

Carney hence became the first prime minister in Canadian history to be appointed to the role without ever having held elected office.

There is an expectation the new prime minister could ask Simon to dissolve Parliament in the coming days to launch an election. Carney will want to win a House of Commons seat and could seek to obtain a stronger mandate from the electorate during a period of turbulence caused by U.S. tariffs.

Before Carney’s appointment, Justin Trudeau handed over his resignation to the governor general, closing the chapter on his over nine years in power. In a farewell video posted to social media, Trudeau said he will always be “boldly and unapologetically Canadian.”

Trudeau announced his planned departure in early January, triggering the leadership race amid U.S. tariff threats. The Liberal Party has since climbed back in the polls, closing the gap with the Conservative Party, which had enjoyed a 20-point lead prior to Trudeau’s resignation announcement.

Carney campaigned in the leadership race as a political outsider, and said his broad experience would help him steer the country through the trade conflict with the United States. Carney was governor of the Bank of Canada during the 2008 financial crisis, and then occupied the same role at the Bank of England during the United Kingdom’s exit of the European Union.

The Oxford-educated economist, who was serving on multiple corporate boards before entering politics, bested two former Trudeau cabinet ministers in the leadership race and one former Liberal MP.

This is a developing story, updates will follow.