Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney attracts yet another Conservative lawmaker to his Liberal Party
TORONTO — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has attracted another opposition Conservative lawmaker to the Liberal party, further assuring that he will soon have a majority government.
Ontario Member of Parliament Marilyn Gladu alluded to President Trump’s threats to Canada’s sovereignty and economy for her decision to defect to Carney’s governing Liberals. Trump has talked about making Canada the 51st state and has applied punishing tariffs on certain key sectors.
“The past year has been like no other Canada has ever faced,” Gladu said in a statement Wednesday. “I’ve heard from constituents that you want serious leadership and a real plan to build a stronger and more independent Canadian economy.”
Gladu is the fifth Member of Parliament to defect to Carney and the fourth Conservative.
“She is going to be a great member of our team,” Carney said outside his office. “This all comes at a time when the country as a whole is uniting.”
The floor crossing puts the Liberals closer to having a majority government and being able to pass any bill without opposition party support.
With another lawmaker decamping from the Conservatives, the Liberals would have 171 Members of Parliament in the House of Commons. They need 172 to secure a majority government, which would allow them to unilaterally pass any bill.
Carney has called special elections for three districts for Monday that would give the Liberals a majority government if his party wins one of them.
The prime minister announced March 8 that votes will be cast April 13 in the Toronto-area districts of Scarborough Southwest and University-Rosedale, which are considered safe seats for the Liberals, and in the Montreal-area riding of Terrebonne, which is considered a toss-up.
The three other Conservative Members of Parliament who defected from their party to join the Liberals in recent months were Chris d’Entremont, Michael Ma and Matt Jeneroux.
Jeneroux referenced Carney’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos as helping his decision. In the speech, Carney condemned economic coercion by great powers against smaller countries and received widespread praise and attention for his remarks, upstaging Trump at the gathering.
Carney has moved the Liberals to the center since replacing Justin Trudeau as prime minister in 2025 and winning national elections
The defection is another blow to Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, who lost the last national election last year and even his own seat in Parliament. He has since rejoined the House of Commons.
Poilievre won a party leadership review earlier this year but continues to have problems controlling his lawmakers.
Gillies writes for the Associated Press.