Chrystia Freeland formally launched her campaign to lead Canada on Sunday, telling supporters that she is the best candidate to do battle with Donald Trump.
The former finance minister is entering the race to helm the governing Liberal Party and replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who announced his resignation on January 6. She is seen as a top contender alongside Mark Carney, a former central banker.
Freeland has vowed to fight for Canada, including using counter-tariffs to exert economic pressure on the US, where Trump will take office as US president on Monday. He has threatened to levy steep tariffs on Canadian goods, potentially harming the economy.
“If you hit us, we’ll hit back,” Freeland said in a speech at a Toronto youth club, promising “dollar-for-dollar” retaliation on US tariffs that would “inflict the biggest trade blow that the United States has ever endured”.
Shortly before Freeland’s speech, Foreign Minister Melanie Joly endorsed Carney for the party leadership. Joly is the most senior cabinet minister in Trudeau’s government to publicly back one of the candidates.