After weeks of mounting pressure to step down, Justin Trudeau has announced he will resign as Canada’s prime minister and as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada.
The resignation brings a long political chapter to an end. Trudeau has been in power since 2015, when he brought the Liberals back to power from the political wilderness.
Trudeau said he will remain at the helm until a new Liberal leader is selected.
But many questions remain for the Liberals, including who will take over and how they will manage a looming federal election. So what happens next?
Addressing Canadians on Monday, Trudeau said the country’s governor general had accepted his request to prorogue Parliament – essentially a suspension that will stop all proceedings, including debates and votes, without dissolving parliament.
While a routine part of parliamentary procedure, it is sometimes used by governments to buy time during a political crisis.
This latest prorogation will freeze parliament until 24 March, just four days before a scheduled 28 March vote on supply to allow the federal government to operate.
It is likely the Liberal caucus will try to have their new leader in place by that date, though it is so far unclear how that leader will be chosen.
Typically, leaders of Canada’s federal parties are chosen over a four or five month period, a process that includes a formal leadership convention.
On Monday, Trudeau said a new leader would be chosen through a “robust, nationwide, competitive process”.
“I am excited to see the process unfold in the months ahead,” he said.
There is no clear successor to Trudeau, but several prominent Liberals including former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, Transport Minister Anita Anand and formal central banker Mark Carney have been floated as possible leaders.
Polls indicate that if a Canadian election were to be held today, the official opposition Conservative Party would be handed a decisive victory.
Riding high in opinion polls with a double-digit lead, the Conservatives have tried for months to trigger an election – which must occur before October – by bringing a series of no-confidence votes in the House of Commons.
If a government loses a confidence motion or vote in the House, it is expected to resign or seek the dissolution of parliament, triggering a federal election.
The government needs the backing of a majority of the 338 members of parliament in a no-confidence vote. The Liberals are 17 seats shy of that, meaning they require support from members of Canada’s other parties.
