\n<\/p>\n
Prime minister Mark Carney of Canada and his Liberal Party narrowly failed to win a majority of seats in Parliament in Monday\u2019s election, and will need help from smaller parties to pass legislation and pursue a challenging agenda, including confronting President Trump\u2019s economic and sovereignty threats.<\/p>\n
With final results coming in on Tuesday from nearly all districts a day after polls closed, the Liberals secured 169 seats in the 343-member Parliament, just three shy of a majority. The Conservative Party won 143 seats and was leading in one more.<\/p>\n
The result was still a resounding success for a Liberal party that three months ago was predicted to lose badly to the Conservative opposition and for Mr. Carney, who had never run for any elected office before Monday. It grants the Liberals a rare fourth consecutive term in government.<\/p>\n
While a majority government would have allowed Mr. Carney to push through his policies without needing to rely on others in Parliament, the task of securing support from other members to pass laws and budgets did not appear too taxing \u2014 the Liberals have governed without a majority over two terms, for the last 4 \u00bd years. Small parties like the Greens and the leftist New Democrats are more naturally aligned with the Liberals\u2019 center-left political platform.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
The Conservative Party had been handily leading in polls until March when Mr. Trump\u2019s tariffs on Canadian goods took effect and Mr. Carney replaced<\/a> Justin Trudeau as prime minister and the leader of the Liberals. For the Conservative leader, Pierre Poilievre, the party\u2019s stinging defeat was made worse by the fact that he lost his seat, which he had held for 20 years, to a Liberal candidate.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The election has been extraordinary in many ways, with candidates and many voters describing it as the most critical vote in their lifetimes.<\/p>\n It was dominated by Mr. Trump and his relentless focus on Canada, America\u2019s closest ally and trading partner. He imposed tariffs on Canadian goods, including autos, steel and aluminum, pushing the country toward a recession, and repeatedly threatened to annex it as the 51st state. Even as Canadians were heading to the polls on Monday, he repeated his argument on social media that making Canada part of the United States would yield economic and military benefits.<\/p>\n Mr. Trump and Mr. Carney spoke Tuesday by phone, Mr. Carney\u2019s office said in a brief statement, adding that they would meet \u201cin the near future.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cPresident Trump congratulated Prime Minister Carney on his recent election,\u201d the statement said. The leaders agreed on the importance of Canada and the United States working together \u2014 as independent, sovereign nations \u2014 for their mutual betterment,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n Mr. Carney, 60, a seasoned economist and policymaker who promoted himself as the anti-Trump<\/a> candidate and centered his campaign on dealing with the United States, ultimately benefited from the American president\u2019s actions.<\/p>\n Now, he is likely to be judged on how he fares in defending Canada from the damage, including significant job losses and the hobbling of major industries, that a prolonged trade war could cause.<\/p>\n In his acceptance speech early on Tuesday, Mr. Carney warned Canadians that there would be difficult times ahead, even as he made clear that he was prepared to protect Canada\u2019s interests in his dealings with Mr. Trump.<\/p>\n \u201cAs I\u2019ve been warning for months, America wants our land, our resources, our water,\u201d he said. \u201cPresident Trump is trying to break us so he can own us. That will never happen.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Mr. Poilievre, 45, and the Conservatives had been dominating polls for years, building their support around the argument that Mr. Trudeau and the Liberals they had dragged Canada into chronic economic malaise.<\/p>\n But they watched their double-digit lead rapidly disappear<\/a> after Mr. Trump\u2019s launched his aggressive campaign against Canada and Mr. Trudeau, who had been deeply unpopular<\/a>, resigned.<\/p>\n Canadians heading to the polls were preoccupied both with the country\u2019s relationship with its neighbor to the south and with the state of the economy at home. Affordability worries, primarily over housing, were top of mind, opinion surveys conducted before the election showed, and seemed to boost Conservative candidates in some districts.<\/p>\n But Canada\u2019s election choice on Monday also served as a referendum of sorts on Mr. Trump and the way he has been treating America\u2019s allies and its trading partners.<\/p>\n