The race to replace Justin Trudeau: Who's in and who's out

In the days since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced he'll be stepping down as leader, the list of potential candidates to replace him has considerably thinned.

The Liberal Party announced they will choose their next leader — and Canada's next prime minister — on March 9. Hopefuls have until Jan. 23 to declare their candidacy.

Here's a look at who's declared their intentions, who's still thinking it over and who is out.

Who's in 

Jaime Battiste

Cape Breton, N.S., Liberal MP Jaime Battiste is mounting a campaign to replace Trudeau.

Battiste made history in 2019 when he was elected as the first Mi'kmaw MP. Now he said he wants to make history again as the first Indigenous prime minister.

"Before there was a Premier Wab Kinew, there had to be an Elijah Harper," Battiste wrote in a statement.

"There must always be people willing to try … even if their journey is one meant to pave the way for future generations." 

Battiste said he's raised about $40,000 so far, a long way from the $350,000 required to officially enter the race. He said he knows that will be a challenge but said he has a plan.

The Nova Scotia MP currently serves as parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and chair of the Liberal Indigenous caucus.

The Conservatives accused the Liberals for being hypocritical for allowing Battiste to run in 2019 after he admitted to racist and sexist posts on social media.

Frank Baylis

He might not be a household name, but businessman Frank Baylis was the first person to throw his hat in the ring. 

Baylis represented Pierrefonds-Dollard in Montreal's West Island during the Trudeau Liberals' first term before stepping down in 2019.

He serves as executive chair of Baylis Medical Tech, the family company he sold to a larger American firm, Boston Scientific, for $1.75 billion US in 2022.

Baylis has been a staunch opponent of Bill 21, the controversial Quebec legislation that bars some public sector workers in positions of authority from wearing overt religious symbols such as hijabs or yarmulkes at their jobs, for the sake of secularism. 

He is the co-president of Non à la Loi 21 (No to Law 21), one of many organizations hoping to fight the legislation at the Supreme Court of Canada. 

Chandra Arya

Ottawa backbencher Chandra Arya hasn't had a high profile in the Trudeau government, but has made waves ever since announcing his candidacy.

He told CBC's Power & Politics he does not believe he needs to speak French to become prime minister.

"How's your French?" host David Cochrane asked near the end of the interview.

"Nope," Arya immediately replied.

When asked if his lack of French could hinder his ability to reach out to French-speaking Canadians and Quebecers, Arya quickly dismissed those concerns. He also said he wants to abolish the monarchy.

Last summer, Arya travelled to India and met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. A statement from Global Affairs Canada at the time said Arya "travelled to India on his own initiative and was not representing the Government of Canada."

Who's considering 

Chrystia Freeland

Perceived to be one of the front-runners, former finance minister Chrystia Freeland has been a pillar of the Liberal government since it swept into power in 2015.

Sources told Radio-Canada that Freeland is expected to announce she's entering the race before Jan. 20.

Born in Peace River, Alta., with degrees from Harvard and Oxford, Freeland worked as a journalist and published two books before jumping into politics.

She first won the riding of Toronto Centre in a 2013 byelection. After the riding's boundaries were redrawn she stood for  University-Rosedale in 2015 and has represented it ever since.

She has held several high-profile cabinet positions including foreign affairs minister during the tense negotiation of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), during Donald Trump's first term as U.S. president. 

She was later promoted to finance minister in 2020, becoming the first woman in Canada to hold the position. She was also given the title as deputy prime minister. 

Proud of her Ukrainian roots, Freeland has been outspoken against Russian President Vladimir Putin on the world stage.

Freeland resigned from cabinet in mid-December, which sent shock waves through Ottawa and galvanized a caucus to push Trudeau out.

In a letter to Trudeau that was subsequently posted to social media, Freeland said she had no choice but to resign after Trudeau approached her about moving to another cabinet role. It was later revealed she had been offered a position in charge of Canada-U.S. relations.

It later came out that Trudeau had planned to replace her at finance with Mark Carney — suspected to be her main opponent in the Liberal leadership race — and put her in charge of Canada-U.S. relations. 

Freeland took a jab at Trudeau's handling of the economy, denouncing in the letter what she called the government's "costly political gimmicks." She went on to write that she and Trudeau had been "at odds" in recent weeks about how to handle the incoming U.S. administration.

Mark Carney

Former central banker Mark Carney has been orbiting the Liberal Party for years and could finally make it official. 

A source close to his team said he's expected to formally announce his campaign to replace Trudeau on Thursday.

Carney was appointed governor of the Bank of Canada starting in 2008 during the global financial crisis. 

He then led the Bank of England in 2013, the first non-Briton to hold the position since the United Kingdom's central bank was established in 1694.

Born in Fort Smith, N.W.T., and raised in Edmonton, Carney had a 13-year career with Goldman Sachs in its London, Tokyo, New York and Toronto offices.

The 59-year-old had been tapped as a special adviser to the party in September, becoming chair of a task force on economic growth.

At the time he sidestepped questions about his leadership ambitions: "I'm interested in doing something, not being something," he said.

After Trudeau's resignation announcement, Carney released a statement saying he would "closely" consider a decision to run for the leadership.

"I'm encouraged and honoured by the support that I've already been hearing from Liberal MPs and Liberals across the country who want us to move forward with positive change and a winning economic plan," he said in a statement.

Karina Gould

House leader Karina Gould has been amassing a team of organizers and supporters.

At 37 years old, the Burlington, Ont., MP would be the youngest candidate in the race. 

Gould has served in cabinet since 2017, taking the democratic institutions portfolio after Trudeau reneged on his promise to bring in electoral reform. 

She made history becoming the first federal cabinet minister to take a maternity leave after giving birth to her son Oliver in 2018. 

Gould served as minister for international development before she was shuffled into the families, children and social development portfolio, where she was tasked with dealing with the political mess of backlogged passport applications. 

She also helped usher in one of the government's marquee policies: $10-a-day child care.

As the government's leader in the House of Commons, Gould routinely squares off against Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.

Jonathan Wilkinson

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson has said he's "actively considering" a leadership run.

Raised in Saskatchewan before heading further west to British Columbia, Wilkinson spent more than 20 years in the private sector largely focused on developing green technologies.

The Rhodes scholar turned North Vancouver MP was elected when the Liberals won in 2015 and has been part of Trudeau's cabinet since 2018. He was previously environment minister and fisheries minister before taking on the natural resources portfolio.

Wilkinson has been a vocal defender of the Liberals' carbon tax in the face of increasing criticism from Conservatives and premiers who oppose the policy.

Who's out

François-Philippe Champagne

Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne has long been considered a potential successor to Trudeau, who has cited fellow Shawinigan, Que., resident Jean Chrétien as an inspiration.

But he announced Jan. 14 he won't be seeking the job after all. 

With nicknames including "Franky Bubbles" and the "Energezier Bunny," Champagne is known for his buoyant and gregarious energy on Parliament Hill.

A lawyer and businessman by trade, Champagne worked as vice-president and senior counsel for the ABB Group, a multinational electrical engineering corporation, before running for the Liberals in 2015.

He took his seat at the cabinet table in 2017, eventually being given the international trade and foreign affairs portfolios.

He was later shuffled and made minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, where he has been credited with successfully enticing global giants like Volkswagen, Honda Motor Co. and Stellantis to build factories in Canada. 

Christy Clark

Former B.C. premier Christy Clark announced Jan. 14 she is not running. 

In a statement to supporters on Tuesday, Clark said there wasn't enough time to mount a successful campaign and her French wasn't where it needed to be.

When B.C Premier Gordon Campbell announced he was stepping down, following his government's deeply unpopular decision to introduce a harmonized sales tax, Clark sought and won the B.C. Liberal Party leadership in 2011 — making her the province's 35th premier. 

She was a polarizing two-term premier who led the province through five balanced budgets. Clark also pushed controversial mega-projects, including Site C dam, establishing the LNG industry and the Massey Bridge replacement.

By 2017 her Liberals were reduced to 43 seats — just short of a majority — and was taken down by an NDP-Green confidence and supply agreement.

Her campaign hit a snag even before it got out the gate. Clark was forced to correct comments she made to CBC's The House about whether or not she joined the Conservative party three years ago to vote in its leadership race.

Clark publicly endorsed Jean Charest in the Conservative leadership race in 2022 and said she intended to join the party to vote for her preferred candidate.

A spokesperson for the Conservative Party provided a screenshot of their records showing Clark had been a member for just over a year.

"Well, I misspoke. Sh*t happens. Lesson learned," Clark later said on social media.

Anita Anand

Transport Minister Anita Anand, long believed to have leadership ambitions, announced not only will she not be seeking the job but she's also not going to reoffer as an MP.

The Oakville, Ont., representative was first named to cabinet in 2019 and has held several portfolios. She quickly rose to prominence as procurement minister during the pandemic when acquiring vaccines and personal protective equipment became a priority for the government.

She was later promoted to defence minister in 2021, holding the file during Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine the next year.

In one of her first acts, Anand transferred the investigation and prosecution of sexual misconduct cases within the Canadian forces into the civilian justice system — a move that came as the military reeled from several investigations. 

Trudeau's 2023 shuffling of Anand to president of the Treasury Board caused rumours of a demotion. She has since taken over the Transport file.

Steven MacKinnon 

After suggesting he was open to running, Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon has since said he won't put his name forward.

In a statement posted to social media, MacKinnon, who represents the riding of Gatineau, said the party is "at a crossroads, and must make important decisions very quickly."

"The leadership race requires diverse, experienced and pragmatic voices, both in French and in English. I believe that I could be such a voice," MacKinnon said. "Unfortunately, the time available does not allow me to mount the kind of campaign that I would want to run."

Mélanie Joly

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly announced Jan. 10 won't seek Liberal leadership, arguing her role in cabinet is too important during an especially charged moment in Canada-U.S. relations.

Speaking to reporters, she said she was ready to  become the first woman to lead the Liberal party and said she believed, with a well organized base, her odds of taking the job were high.

"I decided to put my country first," said the 44-year-old. 

As foreign affairs minister, she's been the government's voice on Russia's aggression in Ukraine, the ongoing Israel–Hamas war and humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Canada's tense relationship with China and its deteriorating ties with India, following the RCMP's allegations members of the Modi government were involved in orchestrating a campaign of violence and intimidation on Canadian soil.  

Before entering federal politics, Joly founded the Vrai changement pour Montréal party and ran for mayor of Montreal in 2013. Despite being a political newbie, she finished second. 

Dominic LeBlanc

The newly appointed finance minister crushed the hopes of many of his caucus colleagues when he announced on Jan. 8 he won't be seeking the top job.

In a statement, the New Brunswick MP said he is touched by support he received but said Canada is at "a critical juncture in its relationship" with the U.S.

"The threat these tariffs pose to our nation's economic well-being and to the livelihood of a countless number of Canadian families cannot be understated — and as such, it requires nothing less than my full attention," the minister said.

LeBlanc, babysitter turned ally to Trudeau, has served as public safety and intergovernmental affairs minister. 

His ties to the Liberal Party run deep: his father Roméo LeBlanc worked as press secretary to former primer minister Lester Pearson and was a Pierre Elliott Trudeau cabinet minister before serving as Governor General.