Justin Trudeau steps down as Liberal leader. Who are the top contenders to replace him?

Mulcair on top candidates for Liberal leadership CTV political commentator Tom Mulcair gives his insight on the top candidates that may be in contention to be the next Liberal leader.

With Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s resignation as Liberal party leader, several well-known political faces may be waiting in the wings for their opportunity to take his place.

Trudeau announced Monday he’s stepping down from the party’s leadership, but staying on as prime minister until a new leader is selected through what he called a “robust, nationwide, competitive process.”

As the Liberal Party of Canada begins its search for a new leader, Parliament, in the meantime, is prorogued until March 24.

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New data from Nanos Research shows that while “none of the above” remains at the top of the list of most appealing replacements for Trudeau, former deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland and former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney are coming in a close second and third place respectively.

Here’s a look at those who are considered to be top contenders to replace Trudeau.

Chrystia Freeland

Trudeau’s long-time deputy prime minister and finance minister quit cabinet last month in a stunning and at-times scathing letter, following months of reported simmering tensions with her now-former boss over spending.

Freeland said her decision to leave her top ministerial portfolios came after Trudeau offered her “another position in Cabinet.” She opted to stay on as a Liberal MP and has already announced her intention to run in the next election.

A source close to Freeland told CTV News on Monday it’s too soon to make any definitive announcements regarding a leadership run.

According to the Nanos numbers, support for Freeland as Trudeau’s replacement is up to 19 per cent now, from 11 per cent last November.

Freeland has been an MP since 2013, when she left journalism to run for political office in the riding of Toronto Centre, during a closely watched byelection to replace former interim Liberal leader and current Canadian ambassador to the United Nations, Bob Rae.

She was considered a star candidate at the time, having written books focused on foreign affairs, income inequality and eastern Europe, one of which was a New York Times bestseller.

In the more-than nine years since Trudeau’s Liberals won the 2015 general election, Freeland has held several cabinet positions, as minister of international trade, foreign affairs, and intergovernmental affairs.

Since being elected to Parliament and appointed to cabinet — until her stunning resignation last month — Freeland had been considered one of Trudeau’s most steadfast supporters and was once widely touted as his potential successor.

“I thank Justin Trudeau for his years of service to Canada and Canadians,” Freeland wrote in a social media post Monday. “I wish him and his family the very best.”

Mark Carney

Former Bank of Canada and Bank of England governor Carney’s name has been floated as a cabinet minister or possible leadership contender for years.

Sources told CTV News over the weekend that Carney is actively considering a leadership run. The news was first reported by the Toronto Star on Friday.

Since Boxing Day, sources say Carney has made and fielded dozens of calls to Liberal MPs and political organizers who view him as a potential replacement for Trudeau.

“Thank you Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for your leadership, for your many contributions to Canada, and for the sacrifices you and your family have made for public service,” Carney wrote in a social media post Monday. “Wishing you the best for your next chapters.”

Last summer, Trudeau confirmed to reporters that he had been talking to Carney about joining federal politics and later in September, he appointed the former central banker to be a special economic advisor to the Liberal party.

Since last November, according to Nanos Research, support for Carney as Trudeau’s successor has dropped to 14 per cent, from 18 per cent last November.

Carney — who works as the head of transition investing for Brookfield Asset Management, and as a United Nations special envoy on climate action and finance — has fielded rumours about his political aspirations since at least 2012.

A former executive at Goldman Sachs, Carney was appointed governor of the Bank of Canada in 2008, amid the global financial crisis.

He remains the second-youngest Bank of Canada governor in history.

Carney’s five-year term as governor of the Bank of Canada ended on June 1, 2013, and a month later he took on the same role at the Bank of England, becoming the first foreigner to be named governor of that institution in its more than three-century-long history.

Dominic LeBlanc

Long-time cabinet minister and a childhood friend of Trudeau, Dominic LeBlanc, is also on the shortlist of possible replacements.

First elected in 2000 in the New Brunswick riding of Beauséjour, LeBlanc has taken on several cabinet positions since Trudeau’s Liberals formed government in 2015 — including as many as four at a time — as he’s long been seen as a trusted minister and top Trudeau ally.

Most recently, he took on the finance portfolio following Freeland’s resignation.

LeBlanc thanked Trudeau in a social media post Monday, writing: “Serving alongside you in the House of Commons and in your Cabinet has been the honour of a lifetime.”

“Beyond politics, your friendship and your support during my fight with cancer is something for which I will never cease to be grateful,” he also wrote. “I will always be proud of everything we accomplished together for Canadians.”

LeBlanc has also been at the forefront of the government’s “Team Canada” approach to the re-election of Donald Trump in the United States.

While he was public safety minister, he travelled with Trudeau to Mar-a-Lago, the president-elect’s Florida estate, to visit with Trump in November, following the future commander-in-chief’s announcement that he plans to impose blanket 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian imports once he takes office.

LeBlanc ran for the Liberal leadership in 2008, but he later dropped out of the race to endorse Michael Ignatieff.

He is the son of former MP, senator, and governor general Roméo LeBlanc.

Last spring, the Globe and Mail published a column stating a former Liberal cabinet minister had met with LeBlanc “over whiskey and cigars” to discuss plans for him to run to succeed Trudeau as party leader and prime minister, if Trudeau was to step down.

LeBlanc, however, denied the rumour, saying in an interview on CTV’s Question Period he was “not organizing a leadership campaign in any way.”

Three per cent of respondents to the most recent Nanos survey said LeBlanc is the most politically appealing candidate to replace Trudeau.

François-Philippe Champagne

François-Philippe Champagne was first elected in 2015, and has since held several cabinet roles, including foreign affairs, infrastructure and communities, and international trade.

He is currently the minister for innovation, science and industry — a title he’s held since 2021 — also working as co-chair of the so-called “Team Canada” approach to the incoming U.S. administration, and operating as one-third of Trudeau’s key economic team, which included Champagne, Freeland as finance minister, and Trade Minister Mary Ng.

“We should be thankful for Justin Trudeau’s dedication and service to our country for so many years,” Champagne wrote in a social media post on Monday. “From helping Canadians in times of need to reshaping our country’s industrial landscape and seizing generational opportunities, Canada can look forward to the future with confidence.”

Before entering politics, Champagne held a senior role with the Swedish-Swiss multinational automation company ABB Group. He has not confirmed leadership intentions.

According to Nanos Research, four per cent of survey respondents think Champagne is the best choice to replace Trudeau.

Melanie Joly

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly — first elected in 2015 in Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Que. — wouldn’t explicitly rule out a future Liberal leadership bid, in an interview on CTV’s Question Period last month, insisting she supported Trudeau and is focused on her own re-election.

The questions about her leadership aspirations came amid a profile of the minister published in the New York Times, labelling Joly as Trudeau’s “possible successor.”

When pressed on the issue by host Vassy Kapelos, Joly wouldn’t directly deny her hopes to someday lead the party.

“Over the last ten years, the Prime Minister devoted himself to making this country a better place for all Canadians,” Joly wrote in a social media post Monday. “Thank you, Justin Trudeau for your leadership, determination and sacrifice. Sending well wishes to him and his family.”

Joly has held three other cabinet positions, prior to taking over the foreign affairs portfolio in 2021.

Four per cent of Nanos Research survey respondents want to see Joly take over leadership of the party.

Anita Anand

Newly appointed minister of transport and internal trade, Anita Anand, has also been a prominent member of Trudeau’s front bench for years, with a comparatively quicker rise in the ranks.

Anand was first elected as the MP for Oakville in 2019, and was immediately promoted to cabinet. She’s held several portfolios in the last five years, including public services and procurement, national defence, and treasury board president. She has not confirmed leadership intentions.

Two per cent of people surveyed by Nanos Research this week said Anand is the most politically appealing to lead the Liberals.

Jonathan Wilkinson

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson is also considering a leadership run, according to a source close to him.

He was first elected in 2015 and has served in Trudeau’s cabinet since 2018.

CTV News is not identifying the source as they’re not authorized to speak on the record, but they did say Wilkinson has been approached by colleagues since Freeland’s resignation nearly a month ago.

With a background in business, Wilkinson is seen as a centrist candidate in a more “fiscally prudent” wing of the Liberal party.

The source categorized it as a serious leadership bid that would bring the party back to a “business focus,” add a Western lens to the conversation — because Wilkinson was born in Saskatchewan — and hope to return to the days of more cross-partisan work to focus on policy.

Wilkinson does not have a campaign team yet, but is said to have people who are “very supportive and ready to assume those roles,” according to the source.

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Christy Clark

Perhaps one contender more open about her interest in running is former B.C. premier Christy Clark.

In a statement to CTV News in October, Clark said she would “want to be part of the conversation on the future direction of the Liberal Party and of the country,” adding the caveat at the time that “the position of Liberal leader is not going to be available any time soon.”

Clark also said in an interview with CTV’s Power Play at the time that she is open to returning to politics and that she’d never closed that door. She is also a weekly panelist on the program.

“I want to thank him as a Canadian for his service to the country that he so clearly loves,” Clark wrote in a social media post, following Trudeau’s resignation announcement Monday. “I wish him and his family well.”

She added “this is the biggest opportunity in over a decade” for the Liberals to grow the party and choose its next leader.

Clark served as B.C. premier between 2011 and 2017, and was the first woman elected to lead the province.

She has been outspoken about Trudeau’s leadership in recent years, and openly critical of the prime minister after this year’s Liberal byelection losses in Toronto-St. Paul’s and LaSalle-Émard-Verdun.

Clark notably became a member of the Conservative party during its 2022 leadership race, saying in an interview on CTV Question Period at the time that despite being a “lifelong Liberal,” she joined the Conservatives so she could vote for its new leader.

At the time, she also called for the party to embrace political centrism, and threw her support behind former Quebec premier Jean Charest for leader.

According to Nanos Research, four per cent of survey respondents think Clark would be the best person to lead the Liberals.

With files from CTV News’ Rachel Aiello, Mike Le Couteur, and Stephanie Ha