Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney declared victory in the federal election on Tuesday, with the Liberal Party projected to return to power. This would mark the Liberals’ fourth straight term in the North American country.

At 3.50 pm, the party had won 168 of the country’s 343 parliamentary seats. However, it remained uncertain whether the party would secure the 172 seats required for a clear majority. The complete results are expected to be released later today.

Speaking to a crowd in Ottawa, Carney stated that while millions of Canadians did not vote for him, he would “always do [his] best to represent everyone who calls Canada home”, reported Global News.

Canada was again facing one of history’s “hinge moments”, said Carney, adding that the country’s “old relationship with the United States, a relationship based on steadily increasing integration, is over”.

“We are over the shock of the American betrayal, but we should never forget the lessons,” he said. “We have to look out for ourselves and above all we have to take care of each other.”

Carney also warned that the US was seeking to take control of Canada and that the effort must be defeated. “The Americans want our resources, our water, our land, our country,” Carney had told party members. “If they succeed, they would destroy our way of life.”

Opinion polls had been predicting a setback for the Liberal Party till United States President Donald Trump began criticising Canada’s economy and suggesting it should become the 51st state, sparking outrage and a wave of nationalism that shifted the election momentum in their favour, AP reported.

His aggressive rhetoric had angered many Canadians, prompting some to cancel trips to the US, boycott American products and even vote early. A record 7.3 million Canadians voted ahead of election day, AP reported.

Trump reiterated his call for Canada to become the 51st state on election day as well.

“Good luck to the Great people of Canada,” he said on social media. “Elect the man who has the strength and wisdom to cut your taxes in half, increase your military power, for free, to the highest level in the World, have your Car, Steel, Aluminum, Lumber, Energy, and all other businesses, quadruple in size, with zero tariffs or taxes, if Canada becomes the cherished 51st.”

The Trump administration had also imposed 25% tariffs on Canada, among other countries. The tax on imports took effect on March 4, when the Canadian government imposed retaliatory tariffs on the US.

In his speech, Carney also congratulated Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre “on a hard-fought, fair good campaign” and his commitment to Canada.

Poilievre conceded defeat, saying Carney had won enough seats to form a “razor-thin minority government”, reported National Post.

“While we will do our constitutional duty of holding government to account and proposing better alternatives, we will always put Canada first as we stare down tariffs and other irresponsible threats from President Trump,” said Poilievre.

Poilievre had tried to make the vote about former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s declining popularity. However, after Trudeau resigned, Carney had taken over as Liberal leader and prime minister in March, shifting the race.

In January, Trudeau had said that he would resign as the leader of the Liberal Party and, therefore, as the prime minister.

Carney won 85.9% of the votes cast in the Liberal Party leadership polls. He defeated his party rival Chrystia Freeland, who is Trudeau’s former deputy prime minister.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Carney and stated that India and Canada “are bound by shared democratic values, a steadfast commitment to the rule of law, and vibrant people-to-people ties”.

“I look forward to working with you to strengthen our partnership and unlock greater opportunities for our people,” said Modi.

Ties between India and Canada have been strained since September 2023 when Trudeau, the prime minister at the time, told his country’s Parliament that Canadian intelligence agencies were actively pursuing “credible allegations” tying agents of the Indian government to the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar near Vancouver.

Nijjar was a supporter of Khalistan, an independent Sikh nation sought by some groups. He was the head of the Khalistan Tiger Force, which is designated a terrorist outfit in India. India rejected Trudeau’s allegations as “absurd and motivated”.

In March, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service reiterated its claim that India, China, Russia and Pakistan could try to interfere in the Canadian general election.