Toronto/CMEDIA: Amid a trade battle with the United States, reportedly millions of Canadians are expected to cast their ballots today in a pivotal election that will decide who will be the leader of Canada.
With Trump’s devastating tariffs on Canadian goods, the election campaign largely became a race about who is best to steer Canada through global uncertainty which would be decided through the results of today’s election day.
Irrespective of who wins in today’s election, the winner will be faced with an unpredictable White House that has questioned Canada’s sovereignty.
With Trudeau’s exit and the arrival of Trump in Washington, the election has largely become a question of who could best deal with the White House and the economy.
The first polls will open in Newfoundland at 8:30 a.m. local time before the final ones close 15 hours later in B.C. at 7 p.m. Pacific.
The election’s significance became inevitable with a sign of a record-breaking 7.3 million Canadians cast ballots in advance polls, up from 5.8 million in 2021.
Margins separating the Liberals and Conservatives being slim, the final outcome of the polls was not certain.
With the opening of the first voting stations in Eastern Canada on Monday, Trump wrote on Truth Social, “Good luck to the Great people of Canada,” and again endorsed Canada becoming the 51st state.
Public opinion polls only capture a snapshot of what the popular vote could be, Nanos said.
But Canada’s electoral system actually facilitates a party to win a majority of seats in the House of Commons in spite of getting less votes than a rival party
“We’re estimating the percentage of Canadians that are going to be voting for all the different federal parties, but what really matters is seats in the House of Commons,” Nanos explained. “The thing is – and this is what’s critical to remember – is that in the last two federal elections, the Conservatives garnered more votes.”
With their support split between eastern and western communities , the next prime minister will likely also face a divided country.
Polling below five percent ahead of election day, political parties like Jagmeet Singh’s NDP, the Bloc Quebecois and Green Party could also be in a fight for political survival in this election.
