Canadian PM Justin Trudeau announces he will resign as soon as Liberal Party finds a successor

“I intend to resign as party leader as prime minister, after the party selects its next leader through a robust, nationwide competitive process. 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 at a press conference.

Trudeau, 53, took office in November 2015 and won re-election 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, and his fortunes never recovered.

Polls show the Liberals will badly lose to the official opposition Conservatives in an election that must be held by late October, regardless of who the leader is.

Trump threatened 25% tariffs on all Canadian goods

Trudeau’s decision to step down comes amid US President-elect Donald Trump threatening to impose 25% tariffs on all Canadian goods if the government does not stem what the Republican calls a flow of migrants and drugs in the US — even though far fewer of each crosses into the US from Canada than from Mexico, which Trump has also threatened.

Last month, Chrystia Freeland, announced her resignation as finance minister from the cabinet on Dec 16, criticising some of Trudeau’s economic priorities in the face of Trump’s threats.

The move, which came shortly after the housing minister quit, stunned the country and raised questions about how much longer the increasingly unpopular Trudeau could stay in his job.

According to an AP report, Freeland and Trudeau had disagreed about two recently announced policies: a temporary sales tax holiday on goods ranging from children’s clothes to beer, and plans to send every citizen a check for $250 Canadian ($174).