Early election 'more likely' Singh says after pulling out of deal with Trudeau

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he’s aware pulling his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement with the Liberals makes an early election “more likely,” but he dropped the deal because Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “has let Canadians down.”

Facing questions for the first time Thursday, after making the major announcement Wednesday in a campaign-style video, Singh doubled down on his assertion that the Liberals “can’t deliver change.” 

“We've got a lot done… but it became very clear to me that Justin Trudeau is too beholden to corporate interests to go further,” Singh said. “We know that that makes the election timing more uncertain and, frankly, more likely.” 

• Recap: Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives

He said he thinks Trudeau is “too weak and too selfish to stop Pierre Poilievre,” framing the next election as a choice between the NDP and the Conservatives.

Designed to inject stability in exchange for policy progress when it was inked back in 2022, the two-party pact was set to expire in June 2025, when the House of Commons is to wrap ahead of the next fixed-date election.

Pressed by reporters on why he extracted his party from the deal, and whether Liberals’ handling of the recent national rail labour dispute was a factor, Singh said it added to his case. He called it a “concrete example” of Trudeau “caving to corporate greed.”

In an interview on CTV News Channel’s Power Play with Vassy Kapelos, Singh went a step further, saying the Liberals’ overall “approach towards working people” put him off.

“We always knew that at some point we would have to make this decision, that we weren't going to stay in this forever,” Singh said.

In taking the certainty of NDP support off the table, the Liberals will once again have to look for political support on a case-by-case basis on key votes in the House of Commons in order to stay in power.

As for his intentions when it comes to future confidence votes that could determine when the next federal election is called, Singh said he plans to consider each confidence measure on its merits.

“We will look at every vote as it comes and make a decision as it comes. I'm not going to presuppose the outcome of a vote before it happens,” he said.

Singh outlines vision of 'hope'

In his opening remarks at the press conference, the NDP leader outlined his “vision for Canada.”

Portraying the country as in a place where “the Canadian dream is fading,” while “elites” are “better off than ever,” Singh said the Conservatives would only make it worse, pitching himself as the only prospective prime minister that would change things.

“There is a battle ahead of us. The fight for the Canada of our dreams. The fight against Pierre Poilievre and his callous agenda of Conservative cuts. The fight to restore hope. And the promise that working hard gets you a good life. I’m ready for the fight,” Singh said.

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The NDP leader said his party will be offering Canadians an option for a “hopeful future” while noting the work ahead to convince voters that a New Democrat federal government is possible.

“Cynics will say, ‘Canada has never had an NDP government, it’s not going to happen…’ We will not let them tell us it can’t be done,” Singh said. “Because if we are together, nothing is impossible. Big corporations and wealthy CEOs have had their government. It’s the people’s time.”

Singh also asserted that he will be the one to lead the New Democrats into the next election, and whenever it comes, they’ll “be ready to fight it.”

'Business as usual': Liberal minister

Trudeau has said he plans to stay focused on Canadians and not politics, when Parliament resumes later this month, a message his MPs echoed Thursday.

At a meeting of the Quebec caucus, Liberals said the deal accomplished a lot, but they're focusing on the work ahead.

“It’s business as usual,” Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge said.

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Poilievre, though, is continuing to push for Singh to help him bring down the minority Liberals and force an early vote.

“He has sold out Canadians. He signed on to a costly coalition with Trudeau… What I’m saying is stand up for the people who voted for you, vote for a carbon tax election,” he said Thursday.

Though, new Nanos Research numbers indicate Canadians — polled before the two-party pact fell apart — may not be interested in an election right now.

“About 54 per cent of Canadians are OK with the Liberals and New Democrats working together to avoid an election,” Nanos said. “You can see that people are more likely to tilt towards not having an election at this time.”

Liberals tout big fundraising from deal's demise

As speculation over the timing of the next election heats up, the Liberal Party of Canada said Thursday that it had a banner day for fundraising in the 12 hours after Singh scrapped the deal. 

The party sent a fundraising email “from the desk of Justin Trudeau” with the subject line: “Disappointing.” In it, Trudeau accuses Singh of doing “as he was told” by Poilievre in pulling out of the agreement early, and “abandoning progressive policies.”

• Liberal House Leader 'quite surprised' by NDP pulling out of two-party deal

“In March 2022, when the agreement was reached, I said that we couldn’t let our differences stand in the way of delivering what Canadians deserve and need. But clearly, Jagmeet Singh and the NDP disagree,” reads the email.

It goes on to say that this time next year they could be “days into a national campaign,” and asked the party faithful to chip in to be ready for an election that could come “at any moment.”

According to the party, the missive was the “best fundraising email of 2024 so far.”

Though, the party also took a hit Thursday. The Liberals’ national campaign director Jeremy Broadhurst announced he is stepping down, after the upcoming federal byelections. 

With files from CTV News’ Mike Le Couteur