Key Points
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has resigned as leader of the Liberals.
- He had been under pressure to quit amid polls showing the party will be crushed at the next election.
- Trudeau says he will stay on in his post until the party chooses a replacement.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said he will step down as leader of the ruling Liberals after nine years in office.
Trudeau has been under heavy pressure from Liberal legislators to quit amid polls showing the party will be crushed at the next election due by October.
"This country deserves a real choice in the next election, and it has become clear to me that if I'm having to fight internal battles, I cannot be the best option in that election," Trudeau said.
Parliament will now be suspended until 24 March, but Trudeau says he will stay on in his post until the party chooses a replacement.
That means an election is unlikely to be held before May and Trudeau will still be prime minister when US President-elect Donald Trump — who has threatened tariffs that would cripple Canada's economy — takes office on 20 January.
The 53-year-old took office in November 2015 and won reelection twice, becoming one of Canada's longest-serving prime ministers.
But his popularity started dipping two years ago amid public anger over high prices and a housing shortage.
Calls for him to step aside have soared since last month, when he tried to demote Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, one of his closest cabinet allies, after she pushed back against his proposals for more spending.
"Removing me from the equation as the leader who will fight the next election for the Liberal Party should also decrease the level of polarisation that we're seeing right now in the House and in Canadian politics," Trudeau said.
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