Trudeau’s exit spurs political scramble as Liberals seek consensus on leadership race rules

A caucus meeting originally called by Liberal MPs to force Prime Minister Justin Trudeau out of his job will now pivot to finding consensus on the rules to replace him, with some set to argue for tighter criteria around who can vote as a safeguard against foreign interference.

Some Liberals will also demand that cabinet ministers step aside if they are running for the party leadership. Candidates likely have until the weekend to make a decision, with the formal rules for the race expected to land any day. Parliament resumes on March 24 and Liberals want a new leader in place by then.

Former central banker Mark Carney, former finance minister Chrystia Freeland, Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc and former B.C. premier Christy Clark are building teams of organizers and strategists as they seriously consider running to replace Mr. Trudeau.

New names are also emerging: Employment Minister Steven MacKinnon, Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson and House Leader Karina Gould.

Also considering a bid are Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, Transport Minister Anita Anand and Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne.

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The Globe and Mail spoke to 11 MPs and long-time Liberal organizers as ministers and MPs await Liberal leadership race rules that will heavily influence who has a fighting chance to become the country’s next prime minister. The Globe is not identifying the MPs, ministers and party insiders so they would discuss leadership matters.

One cabinet minister said MPs plan to press Mr. Trudeau and the Liberal Party national executive to require ministers to step down if they wish to run for the leadership.

The source said cabinet ministers could leverage their positions, staff and privileges to advance their leadership. It would also open the door to possible conflicts of interest in terms of fundraisers and other ethical trouble spots.

The minister, as well as four MPs, told The Globe Tuesday there will also be a pitch to change party rules so that only permanent residents or citizens are allowed to vote in the leadership contest. Currently non-Canadian residents are allowed to vote in Liberal Party riding nominations and leadership contests.

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MPs are also expected to call for tighter rules to ensure that membership sign-ups are not abused. The party will be asked to eliminate prepaid credit cards and restrict membership sales to valid and verifiable credit cards.

One MP said the majority of the Liberal caucus want the party’s grassroots to choose the leader, but they have serious concerns about foreign interference and how that will be managed.

Revelations last year from the public inquiry into foreign interference showed how China, India and Iran meddled in nomination races and leadership contests. The inquiry, led by Marie-Josée Hogue, heard testimony that then-Liberal Han Dong used busloads of Chinese international students to help him win the party nomination for Don Valley North in 2019.

Nothing in the rules requires caucus input, though caucus chair Brenda Shanahan sits on the party’s board of directors, the body charged with setting up the leadership race process.

Penny Collenette, a former Liberal Party campaign official, said the party should shut down accepting new memberships altogether to avoid special interests or foreign states swamping the process.

She said she is not only worried about China and India but also about extreme right-wing “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) adherents.

“The world has changed big time since 2015. We’ve got global bad actors, one of them our neighbour to the south,” she said. “Freeze it now. At least we’re trying to prevent anything happening and let the existing supporter list vote on the candidates that will present themselves.”

Balpreet Singh, legal counsel for the World Sikh Organization, which has been targeted by the Indian government, said his group would also prefer the Liberal leadership vote be restricted to Canadian citizens and permanent residents.

The Liberal Party declined to say whether it would change the rules for the leadership race and defended its existing policies for members.

“Protecting the integrity of our democratic process is a foremost priority for the party,” Liberal Party director of communications Parker Lund said in an e-mailed statement.

“Like most major political parties, the Liberal Party of Canada works very hard to engage more people and increase participation in our democratic process through our nominations, open policy development, leadership contests, and more. This is good for our democracy.”

He said the Liberal Party “remains committed to working with the Commissioner of Canada Elections, law enforcement, or any other bodies that are tasked with pursuing election irregularities if there is sufficient evidence.”

The truncated race will take place during a rapidly shifting political environment. Many leadership hopefuls had expected a contest only after the next federal election. Instead, Mr. Trudeau’s decision to quit on Monday has fast-tracked the timeline and means whoever takes the Liberal helm will also have to face the incoming U.S. administration of Donald Trump and his threat of stiff tariffs on Canadian exports.

The party’s constitution says those who wish to vote in the leadership race must have signed up 41 days before the vote. Once the timelines and other criteria are set, it is expected that potential candidates will make the final decision on whether to jump in.

Mr. LeBlanc, Mr. Carney and Ms. Freeland have yet to publicly declare their intentions, but all three continue to call members of caucus and others within the Liberal Party to gauge potential support.

Mr. Champagne told CBC’s Power and Politics he is “seriously considering” a run, while sources close to Ms. Anand and Ms. Joly said they are each actively considering leadership bids.

In a posting on X this week, Ms. Clark, the former B.C. premier, said she looked forward to participating in the pending effort to choose a new Liberal leader, but did not commit to being a candidate. She called the leadership race the biggest opportunity in over a decade to expand the party and welcome new Liberals.

The Opposition Conservatives said Tuesday that to them, all the candidates are the same and whomever the party might pick as their new leader changes nothing.

“Canadians don’t need this uncertainty and chaos as Liberal leadership contenders try to compete to show Liberal members who loves the carbon tax the most, who wants to run even bigger deficits and who wants to plunge our country into even more misery,” Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer said at a news conference Tuesday.

With a report by Ian Bailey