Liberal Party of Canada#Election results

{{Main|History of the Liberal Party of Canada}}

{{See also|Rebellions of 1837}}

The Liberals are descended from the mid-19th century Reformers who advocated for responsible government throughout British North America.{{cite web|title=Liberal Party of Canada – History |url=http://www.nafla.ca/images/clientupload/Liberal%20Party%20History.pdf |publisher=Newmarket-Aurora Federal Liberal Association |access-date=April 26, 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426000952/http://www.nafla.ca/images/clientupload/Liberal%20Party%20History.pdf |archive-date=April 26, 2012 }} These included George Brown, Alexander Mackenzie, Robert Baldwin, William Lyon Mackenzie and the Clear Grits in Upper Canada, Joseph Howe in Nova Scotia, and the Patriotes and Rouges in Lower Canada led by figures such as Louis-Joseph Papineau. The Clear Grits and {{Lang|fr|Parti rouge|italic=no}} sometimes functioned as a united bloc in the legislature of the Province of Canada beginning in 1854, but a united Liberal Party combining both English and French Canadian members was not formed until 1867. Their lineage from the Clear Grits led to modern Liberals being nicknamed "Grits".{{cite web |last1=Bélanger |first1=Claude |title=Quebec History |url=http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/QuebecHistory/encyclopedia/ClearGritParty-ClearGrits-CanadianHistory.htm |website=The Quebec History Encyclopedia |publisher=Marianopolis College |access-date=28 April 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240731215806/http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/quebechistory/encyclopedia/ClearGritParty-ClearGrits-CanadianHistory.htm |archive-date=2024-07-31 |language=en |date=2005 |quote=The Clear Grits became supporters of George Brown, and were the nucleus of the Liberal party in Ontario in later times. Thence comes the common use of the term 'Grit' as a colloquial synonym for 'Liberal'. |url-status=live}}

At the time of Confederation of the former British colonies of Canada (now Ontario and Quebec), New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, the radical Liberals were marginalized by the more pragmatic Conservative coalition assembled under Sir John A. Macdonald. In the 29 years after Confederation, the Liberals were consigned to opposition, with the exception of one stint in government. Alexander Mackenzie was the de facto leader of the Official Opposition after Confederation and finally agreed to become the first official leader of the Liberal Party in 1873. He was able to lead the party to power for the first time in 1873, after the Macdonald government resigned over the Pacific Scandal. Mackenzie subsequently won the 1874 election and served as prime minister for an additional four years. During the five years the Liberal government brought in many reforms, including the replacement of open voting by secret ballot, confining elections to one day and the creation of the Supreme Court of Canada, the Royal Military College of Canada, and the Office of the Auditor General; however, the party was only able to build a solid support base in Ontario and in 1878 lost the government to Macdonald. The Liberals would spend the next 18 years in opposition.

File:The Honourable Sir Wilfrid Laurier Photo C (HS85-10-16873) - medium crop.jpg, the 7th prime minister of Canada (1896–1911)]]

In their early history, the Liberals were the party of continentalism and opposition to imperialism. The Liberals also became identified with the aspirations of Quebecers as a result of the growing hostility of French Canadians to the Conservatives. The Conservatives lost the support of French Canadians because of the role of Conservative governments in the execution of Louis Riel{{cite book |last1=Duffy |first1=John |title=Fights of our Lives Elections, Leadership, and the Making of Canada |date=2002 |publisher=HarperCollins |isbn=9780002000895 |page=41}} and their role in the Conscription Crisis of 1917, and especially their opposition to French schools in provinces besides Quebec.

It was not until Wilfrid Laurier became leader that the Liberal Party emerged as a modern party. Laurier was able to capitalize on the Conservatives' alienation of French Canada by offering the Liberals as a credible alternative. Laurier was able to overcome the party's reputation for anti-clericalism that offended the still-powerful Quebec Roman Catholic Church. In English-speaking Canada, the Liberal Party's support for reciprocity made it popular among farmers, and helped cement the party's hold in the growing prairie provinces.{{cite web |title = Sir Wilfrid Laurier Biography |url = http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/2/4/h4-3181-e.html |publisher = Library and Archives Canada |access-date = November 24, 2011 |archive-date = December 26, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111226010623/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/2/4/h4-3181-e.html |url-status = live }}

Laurier led the Liberals to power in the 1896 election (in which he became the first Francophone Prime Minister) and oversaw a government that increased immigration to settle Western Canada. Laurier's government created the provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta out of the North-West Territories and promoted the development of Canadian industry.

File:Wm Lyon Mackenzie King.jpg, the 10th prime minister of Canada (1921–1926, 1926–1930, 1935–1948)]]

Until the early part of the century, the Liberal Party was a loose coalition of local, provincial, and regional bodies with a strong national party leader and caucus, but with an informal and regionalized extra-parliamentary organizational structure. There was no national membership of the party. An individual became a member by joining a provincial Liberal party. Laurier called the party's first national convention in 1893 to unite Liberal supporters behind a programme and build the campaign that successfully brought the party to power in 1896, but no efforts were made to create a formal national organization outside Parliament.

As a result of the party's defeats in the 1911 and 1917 federal elections, Laurier attempted to organize the party on a national level by creating three bodies: the Central Liberal Information Office, the National Liberal Advisory Committee, and the National Liberal Organization Committee. However, the advisory committee became dominated by members of Parliament and all three bodies were underfunded and competed with both local and provincial Liberal associations and the national caucus for authority. The party did organize the national party's second convention in 1919 to elect William Lyon Mackenzie King as Laurier's successor (Canada's first leadership convention), yet following the party's return to power in the 1921 federal election the nascent national party organizations were eclipsed by powerful ministers and local party organizations largely driven by patronage.

As a result of both the party's defeat in the 1930 federal election and the Beauharnois scandal, which highlighted the need for distance between the Liberal Party's parliamentary wing and campaign fundraising,[http://www.canadianencyclopedia.ca/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0000604 Beauharnois Scandal] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070514003713/http://www.canadianencyclopedia.ca/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0000604 |date=May 14, 2007 }} at The Canadian Encyclopedia a central coordinating organization, the National Liberal Federation, was created in 1932 with Vincent Massey as its first president. With the Liberal return to power, the national organization languished except for occasional national committee meetings, such as in 1943 when Mackenzie King called a meeting of the federation (consisting of the national caucus and up to seven voting delegates per province) to approve a new platform for the party in anticipation of the end of World War II and prepare for a post-war election.{{cite web |title = Federal Election Question May Be Settled Shortly |url = https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=G_guAAAAIBAJ&pg=5119,3289151&dq=liberal-federation+canada&hl=en |newspaper = Ottawa Citizen |date = September 20, 1943 |access-date = October 18, 2015 |archive-date = August 17, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210817003605/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=G_guAAAAIBAJ&pg=5119,3289151&dq=liberal-federation+canada&hl=en |url-status = live }} No national convention was held, however, until 1948; the Liberal Party held only three national conventions prior to the 1950s – in 1893, 1919 and 1948.John W. Lederle. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/137623?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents "The Liberal Convention of 1893"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202001814/http://www.jstor.org/stable/137623?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents |date=February 2, 2017 }}. The Canadian Journal of Economics and Political Science. Vol. 16, No. 1 (Feb. 1950), pp. 42–52. The National Liberal Federation remained largely dependent on provincial Liberal parties and was often ignored and bypassed the parliamentary party in the organization of election campaigns and the development of policy. With the defeat of the Liberals in the 1957 federal election and in particular 1958, reformers argued for the strengthening of the national party organization so it would not be dependent on provincial Liberal parties and patronage. A national executive and Council of presidents, consisting of the presidents of each Liberal riding association, were developed to give the party more co-ordination and national party conventions were regularly held in biennially where previously they had been held infrequently. Over time, provincial Liberal parties in most provinces were separated from provincial wings of the federal party and in a number of cases disaffiliated. By the 1980s, the National Liberal Federation was officially known as the Liberal Party of Canada.{{cite journal |last = Koop |first = Ryan |title = The Elusive Nature of National Party Organization in Canada and Australia |url = https://sfu.academia.edu/RoyceKoop/Papers/414297/The_Elusive_Nature_of_National_Party_Organization_in_Canada_and_Australia |journal = Paper Presented at the Canadian Political Science Association Annual Conference. University of British Columbia, Vancouver BC. 4–6 June 2008 |access-date = June 17, 2012 |archive-date = July 8, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230708191422/https://sfu.academia.edu/RoyceKoop/Papers/414297/The_Elusive_Nature_of_National_Party_Organization_in_Canada_and_Australia |url-status = live }}

File:Louisstlaurent.jpg, the 12th prime minister of Canada (1948–1957)]]

Under Laurier, and his successor William Lyon Mackenzie King, the Liberals promoted Canadian sovereignty and greater independence within the British Commonwealth. In Imperial Conferences held

throughout the 1920s, Canadian Liberal governments often took the lead in arguing that the United Kingdom and the dominions should have equal status, and against proposals for an 'imperial parliament' that would have subsumed Canadian independence. After the King–Byng Affair of 1926, the Liberals argued that the Governor General of Canada should no longer be appointed on the recommendation of the British government. The decisions of the Imperial Conferences were formalized in the Statute of Westminster, which was actually passed in 1931, the year after the Liberals lost power.

The Liberals also promoted the idea of Canada being responsible for its own foreign and defence policy. Initially, it was Britain which determined external affairs for the dominion. In 1905, Laurier created the Department of External Affairs, and in 1909 he advised Governor General Earl Grey to appoint the first Secretary of State for External Affairs to Cabinet. It was also Laurier who first proposed the creation of a Canadian Navy in 1910. Mackenzie King recommended the appointment by Governor General Lord Byng of Vincent Massey as the first Canadian ambassador to Washington in 1926, marking the Liberal government's insistence on having direct relations with the United States, rather than having Britain act on Canada's behalf.

In the period just before and after the Second World War, the party became a champion of 'progressive social policy'.{{cite book |author = David Johnson |title = Thinking Government: Public Sector Management in Canada |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=TcL80sSautgC&q=progressive+social+policy+mackenzie+king&pg=PA100 |year = 2006 |publisher = University of Toronto Press |isbn = 978-1-5511-1779-9 |pages = 99–103 |access-date = October 5, 2020 |archive-date = September 13, 2024 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240913225355/https://books.google.com/books?id=TcL80sSautgC&q=progressive+social+policy+mackenzie+king&pg=PA100#v=snippet&q=progressive%20social%20policy%20mackenzie%20king&f=false |url-status = live }} As prime minister for most of the time between 1921 and 1948, King introduced several measures that led to the creation of Canada's social safety net. Bowing to popular pressure, he introduced the mother's allowance, a monthly payment to all mothers with young children. He also reluctantly introduced old age pensions when J. S. Woodsworth required it in exchange for his Co-operative Commonwealth Federation party's support of King's minority government.

Louis St. Laurent succeeded King as Liberal leader on August 7, 1948 and as prime minister on November 15, 1948. In the 1949 and 1953 federal elections, St. Laurent led the Liberal Party to two large majority governments. As prime minister he oversaw the joining of Newfoundland in Confederation as Canada's tenth province, he established equalization payments to the provinces, and continued with social reform with improvements in pensions and health insurance. In 1956, Canada played an important role in resolving the Suez Crisis, and contributed to the United Nations force in the Korean War. Canada enjoyed economic prosperity during St. Laurent's premiership and wartime debts were paid off. The Pipeline Debate proved the Liberal Party's undoing. Their attempt to pass legislation to build a natural gas pipeline from Alberta to central Canada was met with fierce disagreement in the House of Commons. In 1957, John Diefenbaker's Progressive Conservatives won a minority government and St. Laurent resigned as prime minister and Liberal leader.{{cite web |title = Louis St. Laurent Biography |url = http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/2/4/h4-3306-e.html |publisher = Library and Archives Canada |access-date = November 23, 2011 }}

File:Lester B. Pearson (1963 ABC press photo).jpg, the 14th prime minister of Canada (1963–1968)]]

Lester B. Pearson was easily elected Liberal leader at the party's 1958 leadership convention. However, only months after becoming Liberal leader, Pearson led the party into the 1958 federal election that saw Diefenbaker's Progressive Conservatives win the largest majority government, by percentage of seats, in Canadian history.{{cite web |title = John Diefenbaker Biography |url = http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/2/4/h4-3331-e.html |publisher = Library and Archives Canada |access-date = November 23, 2011 |archive-date = November 7, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111107231549/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/2/4/h4-3331-e.html |url-status = live }} The Progressive Conservatives won 208 of the 265 seats in the House of Commons, while the Liberals were reduced to just 48 seats. Pearson remained Liberal leader during this time and in the 1962 election managed to reduce Diefenbaker to a minority government. In the 1963 election Pearson led the Liberal Party back to victory, forming a minority government. Pearson served as prime minister for five years, winning a second election in 1965. While Pearson's leadership was considered poor and the Liberal Party never held a majority of the seats in parliament during his premiership, he left office in 1968 with an impressive legacy.{{cite web |title = Lester Pearson Biography |url = http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/2/4/h4-3356-e.html |publisher = Library and Archives Canada |access-date = November 23, 2011 |archive-date = January 24, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120124114042/http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/2/4/h4-3356-e.html |url-status = live }} Pearson's government introduced Medicare, a new immigration act, the Canada Pension Plan, Canada Student Loans, the Canada Assistance Plan, and adopted the Maple Leaf as Canada's national flag.{{cite book |author = Andrew Cohen |title = Extraordinary Canadians: Lester B. Pearson |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JyBrNgMJELIC&q=for+this%2C+little+credit |year = 2008 |publisher = Penguin Canada |isbn = 978-0-1431-7269-7 }}

{{Main|Premierships of Pierre Trudeau}}

File:Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau 1975 (UPI press photo) (cropped).jpg, the 15th prime minister of Canada (1968–1979, 1980–1984)]]

Under Pierre Trudeau, the mission of a progressive social policy evolved into the goal of creating a "just society".{{cite web|first1= Allison|last1= Calwell|title= Former Canadian PM dies|url= http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/stories/s193185.htm|date= September 29, 2000|publisher= Australian Broadcasting Corporation|access-date= November 13, 2015|archive-date= September 13, 2024|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240913225258/https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/worldtoday|url-status= live}} In the late 1970s, Trudeau stated that his Liberal Party adhered to the "radical centre".Graham, Ron, ed. (1998). The Essential Trudeau. McClelland & Stewart, p. 71. {{ISBN|978-0-7710-8591-8}}.Thompson, Wayne C. (2017). Canada. Rowman & Littlefield, p. 135. {{ISBN|978-1-4758-3510-6}}.

The Liberal Party under Trudeau promoted official bilingualism and passed the Official Languages Act, which gave French and English languages equal status in Canada. Trudeau hoped that the promotion of bilingualism would cement Quebec's place in Confederation, and counter growing calls for an independent Quebec. The party hoped the policy would transform Canada into a country where English and French Canadians could live together, and allow Canadians to move to any part of the country without having to lose their language. Although this vision has yet to fully materialize, official bilingualism has helped to halt the decline of the French language outside of Quebec, and to ensure that all federal government services (including radio and television services provided by the government-owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation/Radio-Canada) are available in both languages throughout the country.{{cite web|first1= Tamara|last1= Baluja|first2= James|last2= Bradshaw|title= Is bilingualism still relevant in Canada?|url= https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/is-bilingualism-still-relevant-in-canada/article4365620/?page=all|date= June 22, 2012|newspaper= The Globe and Mail|access-date= November 13, 2015|archive-date= September 13, 2024|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240913225326/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/is-bilingualism-still-relevant-in-canada/article4365620/?page=all|url-status= live}}

The Trudeau Liberals are also credited with support for state multiculturalism as a means of integrating immigrants into Canadian society without forcing them to shed their culture,{{cite book|author1= Stephen Tierney|author2= Hugh Donald Forbes|title= Multiculturalism and the Canadian Constitution|url= http://www.ubcpress.ca/books/pdf/chapters/2007/multiculturalismandthecanadianconstitution.pdf|year= 2007|publisher= UBC Press|isbn= 978-0-7748-1445-4|pages= 27–41|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151117033156/http://www.ubcpress.ca/books/pdf/chapters/2007/multiculturalismandthecanadianconstitution.pdf|archive-date= November 17, 2015|df= mdy-all}} leading the party to build a base of support among recent immigrants and their children.Blais, André. [http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=364576 "Accounting for the Electoral Success of the Liberal Party in Canada"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117052953/http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=364576 |date=November 17, 2015 }}. Journal of Political Science, Dec 2005, Vol. 38#4. pp 821–840. This marked the culmination of a decades-long shift in Liberal immigration policy, a reversal of pre-war racial attitudes that spurred discriminatory policies such as the Chinese Immigration Act of 1923{{cite web|title = Chinese Immigration Act, 1923|url = http://www.pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/chinese-immigration-act-1923|publisher = Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21|access-date = April 30, 2017|archive-date = May 2, 2017|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170502034523/http://www.pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/chinese-immigration-act-1923|url-status = live}} and the MS St. Louis incident.{{cite news|author = Stephanie Levitz|title = Liberals working on apology for 1939 decision to turn away Jewish refugees|url = https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/liberals-working-on-apology-for-1939-decision-to-turn-away-jewish-refugees/article36410599/|newspaper = The Globe and Mail|date = September 27, 2016|access-date = September 28, 2017|archive-date = November 15, 2017|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171115172738/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/liberals-working-on-apology-for-1939-decision-to-turn-away-jewish-refugees/article36410599/|url-status = live}}File:Liberal Party logo 1968.svg

The most lasting effect of the Trudeau years has been the patriation of the Constitution of Canada and the creation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.{{cite book|author1= Lois Harder|author2= Steve Patten|title= Patriation and Its Consequences: Constitution Making in Canada|url= http://www.ubcpress.ca/books/pdf/chapters/2015/PatriationAndItsConsequences.pdf|year= 2015|publisher= UBC Press|isbn= 978-0-7748-2861-1|pages= 3–23|url-status= dead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20151117032743/http://www.ubcpress.ca/books/pdf/chapters/2015/PatriationAndItsConsequences.pdf|archive-date= November 17, 2015|df= mdy-all}}{{cite web|first= Linda|last= McKay-Panos|title= The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms: An Integral Part of our Constitution|url= http://www.lawnow.org/the-canadian-charter-of-rights-and-freedoms-an-integral-part-of-our-constitution/|newspaper= LawNow|access-date= November 12, 2015|date= January 1, 2013|archive-date= September 13, 2024|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240913225258/http://www.lawnow.org/the-canadian-charter-of-rights-and-freedoms-an-integral-part-of-our-constitution/|url-status= live}} Trudeau's Liberals supported the concept of a strong, central government, and fought Quebec separatism, other forms of Quebec nationalism, and the granting of "distinct society" status to Quebec; however, such actions served as rallying cries for sovereigntists, and alienated many Francophone Quebeckers.

File:Finance Minister John Turner speaks to reporters 1975 (cropped).jpg, the 17th prime minister of Canada (June – September 1984)]]

File:Liberal Party of Canada logo, 1984.svg

After Trudeau's retirement in 1984, many Liberals, such as Jean Chrétien and Clyde Wells, continued to adhere to Trudeau's concept of federalism. Others, such as John Turner, supported the failed Meech Lake and Charlottetown Constitutional Accords, which would have recognized Quebec as a "distinct society" and would have increased the powers of the provinces to the detriment of the federal government.

Trudeau stepped down as prime minister and party leader in 1984, as the Liberals were slipping in polls. At that year's leadership convention, Turner defeated Chrétien on the second ballot to become party leader and (following Trudeau's resignation) prime minister.Terence McKenna. [http://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/jean-chretien-losing-the-liberal-leadership "Jean Chrétien: Losing the Liberal leadership"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151119191817/http://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/jean-chretien-losing-the-liberal-leadership |date=November 19, 2015 }}. CBC's The Journal, February 27, 1986. Retrieved November 12, 2015. Immediately, upon taking office, Turner called a snap election, citing favourable internal polls. However, the party was hurt by numerous patronage appointments, many of which Turner had made supposedly in return for Trudeau retiring early. Also, they were unpopular in their traditional stronghold of Quebec because of the constitution repatriation which excluded that province. The Liberals lost power in the 1984 election, and were reduced to only 40 seats in the House of Commons. The Progressive Conservatives won a majority of the seats in every province, including Quebec. The 95-seat loss was the worst defeat in the party's history, and the worst defeat at the time for a governing party at the federal level. What was more, the New Democratic Party, successor to the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, won only ten fewer seats than the Liberals, and some thought that the NDP under Ed Broadbent would push the Liberals to third-party status.{{cite book |author = Brooke Jeffrey |title = Divided Loyalties: The Liberal Party of Canada, 1984–2008 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=8dBHhzra5mQC&q=ed+broadbent+ten+seats+liberals+1984&pg=PT20 |year = 2010 |publisher = University of Toronto Press |isbn = 978-1-4426-6019-9 |access-date = October 5, 2020 |archive-date = September 13, 2024 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240913225333/https://books.google.com/books?id=8dBHhzra5mQC&q=ed+broadbent+ten+seats+liberals+1984&pg=PT20#v=snippet&q=ed%20broadbent%20ten%20seats%20liberals%201984&f=false |url-status = live }}

The party began a long process of reconstruction. A small group of young Liberal MPs, known as the Rat Pack, gained fame by criticizing the Progressive Conservative government of Brian Mulroney at every turn. Also, despite public and backroom attempts to remove Turner as leader, he managed to consolidate his leadership at the 1986 review.

The 1988 election was notable for Turner's strong opposition to the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement negotiated by Progressive Conservative Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. Although most Canadians voted for parties opposed to free trade, Mulroney's "Tories" were returned with a majority government, and implemented the deal. The Liberals recovered from their near-meltdown of 1984, however, winning 83 seats and ending much of the talk of being eclipsed by the NDP, who won 43 seats.

{{Main|Premiership of Jean Chrétien}}

File:Jean Chrétien 1993.jpg, the 20th prime minister of Canada (1993–2003)]]

Turner announced that he would resign as leader of the Liberal Party on May 3, 1989. The Liberal Party set a leadership convention for June 23, 1990, in Calgary. Five candidates contested the leadership of the party, with former Deputy Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, who had served in every Liberal cabinet since 1965, and Paul Martin, MP and former CEO of Canada Steamship Lines, as the frontrunners. A key moment in that race took place at an all-candidates debate in Montreal, where the discussion quickly turned to the Meech Lake Accord. Martin, favouring Meech, attempted to force Chrétien to abandon his nuanced position on the deal and declare for or against it. When Chrétien refused to endorse the deal, young Liberal delegates crowding the hall began to chant "vendu" ("sellout" in French) and "Judas" at Chrétien. The incident damaged Chrétien's reputation in Quebec, and lead to a lasting animosity between Chrétien and Martin. Chrétien won on the first ballot.{{cite web |title = Jean Chrétien Bio |url = http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/primeministers/h4-3506-e.html |publisher = Library and Archives Canada |access-date = November 9, 2011 |archive-date = October 18, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171018070844/http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/primeministers/h4-3506-e.html |url-status = dead }}

Chrétien's Liberals campaigned in the 1993 election on the promise of renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and eliminating the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Just after the writ was dropped for the election, they issued the Red Book, an integrated and coherent approach to economic, social, environmental and foreign policy. This was unprecedented for a Canadian party. Taking full advantage of the inability of Mulroney's successor, Kim Campbell, to overcome a large amount of antipathy toward Mulroney, they won a strong majority government with 177 seats—the third-best performance in party history, and their best since 1949. The Progressive Conservatives were cut down to only two seats, suffering a defeat even more severe than the one they had handed the Liberals nine years earlier. The Liberals were re-elected with a considerably reduced majority in 1997, but nearly tied their 1993 total in 2000. To this date, Chrétien is the last Liberal Prime Minister to secure a majority in three federal elections.

For the next decade, the Liberals dominated Canadian politics in a fashion not seen since the early years of Confederation. This was because of the splintering of the Progressive Conservative's electoral coalition. The PCs' Western support, for all practical purposes, transferred en masse to the Western-based Reform Party, which replaced the PCs as the largest right-wing party in Canada; however, the party was unable to overcome perceptions of extremism and that it was merely a Western protest party, and was virtually non-existent east of Manitoba. Meanwhile, the Quebec nationalists who had once supported the Tories largely switched their support to the sovereigntist Bloc Québécois, while the Tories' Ontario support largely moved to the Liberals. With a divided opposition, the Liberals were able to reap large majorities—especially in Ontario, where the party won all but one seat in 1993, all but two in 1997 and all but three in 2000. However, there was some disappointment as Liberals were not able to recover their traditional dominant position in Quebec, despite being led by a Quebecer.

File:Liberal Party of Canada L logo-Parti Liberal du Canada logo de L (1990s-2004).svg

While the Chrétien Liberals campaigned from the left, their time in power is most marked by the cuts made to many social programs, including health transfers, in order to balance the federal budget.{{cite news |title = Chrétien rejects health-care pleas from provinces |newspaper = Globe and Mail |date = April 2000 |url = https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/chretien-rejects-health-care-pleas-from-provinces/article1038283/ |access-date = October 30, 2019 |last1 = Scoffield |first1 = Heather |archive-date = August 3, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200803032602/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/chretien-rejects-health-care-pleas-from-provinces/article1038283/ |url-status = live }} Although Chrétien had supported the Charlottetown Accord while in opposition, in government he opposed major concessions to Quebec and other provincialist factions. In contrast to their promises during the 1993 campaign, they implemented only minor changes to NAFTA, embraced the free trade concept and—with the exception of the replacement of the GST with the Harmonized Sales Tax in some Atlantic provinces—broke their promise to replace the GST.

After a proposal for Quebec independence was narrowly defeated in the 1995 Quebec referendum, the Liberals passed the "Clarity Act", which outlines the federal government's preconditions for negotiating provincial independence.{{cite web |title = Clarity Act |publisher = Government of Canada Privy Council Office |url = http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/aia/index.asp?lang=eng&page=federal&doc=constitution/clarityact/ClarityAct_e.htm |access-date = November 9, 2011 |archive-date = December 7, 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20081207062905/http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/aia/index.asp?lang=eng&page=federal&doc=constitution%2Fclarityact%2FClarityAct_e.htm |url-status = dead }} In Chrétien's final term, he supported same-sex marriage,{{cite news |author = Melissa Cheung |url = https://www.cbsnews.com/news/canada-will-legalize-gay-marriage/ |title = Canada Will Legalize Gay Marriage |publisher = CBS News |date = June 18, 2003 |access-date = November 9, 2011 |archive-date = October 29, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141029034027/http://www.cbsnews.com/news/canada-will-legalize-gay-marriage/ |url-status = live }}{{cite news |url = https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/18/world/canadian-leaders-agree-to-propose-gay-marriage-law.html?pagewanted=1 |title = Canadian leaders agree to propose gay marriage law |work = The New York Times |date = June 18, 2003 |access-date = November 9, 2011 |first = Clifford |last = Krauss |archive-date = March 31, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190331193002/https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/18/world/canadian-leaders-agree-to-propose-gay-marriage-law.html?pagewanted=1 |url-status = live }} decriminalizing the possession of small quantities of marijuana,{{Cite news |date=2003-10-03 |title=Chrétien jokes about trying pot once it's decriminalized |language=en-CA |work=The Globe and Mail |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/chretien-jokes-about-trying-pot-once-its-decriminalized/article20451387/ |access-date=2023-06-15 |archive-date=June 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230615205943/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/chretien-jokes-about-trying-pot-once-its-decriminalized/article20451387/ |url-status=live }} and ratified the Kyoto Protocol.{{cite news |date=December 16, 2002 |title=Kyoto ratification 'important for future generations' |work=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kyoto-ratification-important-for-future-generations-1.325123 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061205224931/http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2002/12/16/kyotosign021216.html |url-status=live |archive-date=December 5, 2006 |access-date=January 9, 2013}} On March 17, 2003, Chrétien announced that Canada would not support the invasion of Iraq,{{cite news |title = Chrétien restates opposition to Iraq war |url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/chrtien-restates-opposition-to-iraq-war-1.405182 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071030095455/http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2003/03/18/chretieniraq030318.html |url-status = live |archive-date = October 30, 2007 |access-date = November 9, 2011 |publisher = Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |date = March 18, 2003 }} which caused friction with the United States.{{Cite journal |last=Sayle |first=Timothy A. |date=2015 |title="But he has nothing on at all!" Canada and the Iraq War, 2003 |journal=Canadian Military History |volume=19 |issue=4 |pages=18–19}} However, a poll conducted by EKOS for the Toronto Star and La Presse shortly afterwards showed widespread approval of Chrétien's decision by the Canadian public: 71 per cent of those questioned approved of the government's decision to not enter the United States-led invasion, with 27 per cent expressing disapproval.{{Cite news |last = Harper |first = Tim |title = Canadians back Chrétien on war, poll finds |newspaper = Toronto Star |date = March 22, 2003 |url = http://25461.vws.magma.ca/admin/articles/torstar-24-03-2003c.html |access-date = November 9, 2011 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110706184537/http://25461.vws.magma.ca/admin/articles/torstar-24-03-2003c.html |archive-date = July 6, 2011 |df = mdy-all }}

In Chrétien's final weeks as prime minister, he introduced legislation to reduce the maximum allowable donation to a political party or candidate to $5,000. The move came as a surprise even to Liberal supporters, as Chrétien had not done anything about election financing at any other point in his ten years in office. Political observers suggested that the move allowed Chrétien to retire on a positive note while saddling Martin, his longstanding rival and successor, with the burden of having to fight an election under the strict new rules.{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/realitycheck/gray/20060613.html |author=Gray, John |publisher=CBC News |title=Realists and idealists and a bag of hammers |access-date=January 1, 2016 |date=June 13, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101008121550/http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/realitycheck/gray/20060613.html |archive-date=October 8, 2010 }}

{{Main|Premiership of Paul Martin}}

File:Paul martin 2004 (cropped).jpg, the 21st prime minister of Canada (2003–2006)]]

Martin succeeded Chrétien as party leader and prime minister in 2003. Despite the personal rivalry between the two, Martin was Minister of Finance during the 1990s and was the architect of the Liberals' economic policies. Chrétien left office with a high approval rating and Martin was expected to make inroads into Quebec and Western Canada, two regions of Canada where the Liberals had not attracted much support since the 1980s and 1990s, respectively.

The political situation changed with the revelation of the sponsorship scandal, in which advertising agencies supporting the Liberal Party received grossly inflated commissions for their services. Having faced a divided conservative opposition for the past three elections, Liberals were seriously challenged by competition from the newly united Conservative Party led by Stephen Harper. The infighting between Martin and Chrétien's supporters also dogged the party. Nonetheless, by criticizing the Conservatives' social policies, the Liberals were able to draw progressive votes from the NDP, which made the difference in several close races. In the 2004 election, the Liberals retained enough support to continue as the government, though they were reduced to a minority.

In the midst of various court rulings in 2003 and 2004 that allowed for the legalization of same-sex marriage in seven provinces and one territory, the Martin government proposed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage across Canada. The House of Commons passed the Civil Marriage Act in late June 2005 in a late-night, last-minute vote before Parliament closed down, the Senate passed it in July 2005, and it received Royal Assent on July 20. This made Canada the fourth country in the world to allow same-sex marriages.{{cite news |author=CBC News |date=June 29, 2005 |title=The Supreme Court and same-sex marriage |publisher=CBC |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news2/background/samesexrights/ |access-date=April 26, 2014 |archive-date=April 27, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140427000106/http://www.cbc.ca/news2/background/samesexrights/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |date=2009-05-29 |title=Same-sex marriage around the world |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/same-sex-marriage-around-the-world-1.799137 |access-date=2023-06-15 |website=CBC News |archive-date=November 25, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101125125134/http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/05/26/f-same-sex-timeline.html |url-status=live }} In November 2005, the Martin government brokered a deal between first ministers and aboriginal leaders known as the Kelowna Accord, which sought to improve the education, skills training, housing and health care of aboriginal peoples by providing $5 billion in funding over five years.{{cite web |date=2007-03-04 |title=Charest calls on Harper to honour Kelowna aboriginal accord |url=http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=01b6e6af-f4dd-4baa-84b1-7cfc317d5699 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131013094942/http://www.canada.com/topics/news/story.html?id=01b6e6af-f4dd-4baa-84b1-7cfc317d5699 |archive-date=2013-10-13 |access-date=2012-07-24 |publisher=Canada.com}}

Following the release of the first Gomery Report, the Liberals dropped in polls. Nonetheless, Martin turned down the NDP's conditions for continued support, as well as rejecting an opposition proposal which would schedule a February 2006 election in return for passing several pieces of legislation. The Liberals thus lost a confidence vote on November 28, and Martin advised Governor General Michaëlle Jean to dissolve Parliament and call an election for January 2006.

The Liberal campaign was dogged from start to finish by the sponsorship scandal, which was brought up by a Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) criminal investigation into the leak of the income trust announcement. Numerous gaffes, contrasting with a smoothly run Conservative campaign, put Liberals as many as ten points behind the Conservatives in opinion polling. They managed to recover some of their momentum by election night, but not enough to retain power. They won 103 seats, a net loss of 30 from when the writs were dropped, compared to 124 for the Conservatives. Martin resigned as Liberal leader on March 18.{{Cite news |date=2006-03-16 |title=Martin to officially resign as party leader |work=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/martin-to-officially-resign-as-party-leader-1.603650 |access-date=2023-06-15 |archive-date=June 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230615201146/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/martin-to-officially-resign-as-party-leader-1.603650 |url-status=live }}

File:Liberal rally Brampton 2008 election 82.jpg makes a speech on October 10, 2008, in Brampton West. Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien was among notable Liberals at this rally; this was his first time campaigning for anyone since retirement.]]

The ensuing leadership election was set for December 2, 2006, in Montreal.{{cite news|title=Rock says no to Liberal leadership |url=http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/story.html?id=c50b0f26-e061-46d1-a559-e4f63bdd7f69&k=1732 |access-date=November 12, 2011 |newspaper=Ottawa Citizen |date=February 3, 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214202931/http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/story.html?id=c50b0f26-e061-46d1-a559-e4f63bdd7f69&k=1732 |archive-date=February 14, 2012 }} Eight candidates entered the contest, but only Michael Ignatieff, Bob Rae, Stéphane Dion and Gerard Kennedy were considered to be the capable of garnering enough support to be able to win the leadership, with Ignatieff and Rae being considered the front-runners.{{cite news |title = Canadians Place Rae as Best Liberal Leader |url = http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/7107/canadians_place_rae_as_best_liberal_leader/ |publisher = Angus Reid |access-date = November 12, 2011 |date = October 20, 2006 |url-status = usurped |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120121130424/http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/7107/canadians_place_rae_as_best_liberal_leader/ |archive-date = January 21, 2012 |df = mdy-all }}{{cite news |title = Rae Seen as Best Future Liberal PM in Canada |url = http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/7050/rae_seen_as_best_future_liberal_pm_in_canada/ |access-date = November 12, 2011 |publisher = Angus Reid |date = October 23, 2006 |url-status = usurped |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120121143357/http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/7050/rae_seen_as_best_future_liberal_pm_in_canada/ |archive-date = January 21, 2012 |df = mdy-all }} Although Ignatieff lead on the first two ballots, on the third ballot Dion picked up enough support from the eliminated Kennedy to leapfrog both Rae and Ignatieff, eliminating Rae. On the fourth and final ballot, Dion defeated Ignatieff to become leader of the Liberal Party.{{cite news |title = The Liberal Leadership Race |url = http://www.cbc.ca/news/interactives/who-librecap/ |publisher = Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date = November 12, 2011 |archive-date = January 19, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120119143626/http://www.cbc.ca/news/interactives/who-librecap/ |url-status = live }}

Dion campaigned on environmental sustainability during the leadership race, which later evolved into the "Green Shift": a proposal for a national carbon tax that would be offset by reductions to income tax rates.{{cite news |title = The Green Shift |url = http://www.cbc.ca/newsatsixns/pdf/liberalgreenplan.pdf |publisher = Liberal Party of Canada |access-date = November 13, 2011 |archive-date = December 21, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111221073942/http://www.cbc.ca/newsatsixns/pdf/liberalgreenplan.pdf |url-status = live }} The plan was a key policy for the party in the 2008 federal election, but it was not well received and was continuously attacked by both the Conservatives and NDP.{{cite news |last = Morris |first = Chris |title = Liberal Green Shift is 'green shaft,' says Harper |url = https://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/478887 |access-date = November 13, 2011 |newspaper = Toronto Star |date = August 14, 2008 |archive-date = August 18, 2008 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080818041819/http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/478887 |url-status = live }}{{cite news |title = Harper hopes Green Shift will turn Liberal voters Tory blue |url = http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=b593fd8c-22bd-4805-97d8-a66dee44e5de |access-date = November 13, 2011 |newspaper = Canwest News Service |date = October 5, 2008 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120214195835/http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=b593fd8c-22bd-4805-97d8-a66dee44e5de |archive-date = February 14, 2012 |df = mdy-all }}{{cite news |last = Galloway |first = Gloria |title = Layton lays into Green Shift |url = https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/article708340.ece |access-date = November 13, 2011 |newspaper = The Globe and Mail |date = September 11, 2008 }}{{dead link|date=December 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}{{cite news|title=Green Shift touted as both saviour and damnation |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/green-shift-touted-as-both-saviour-and-damnation/article1061161/ |access-date=November 13, 2011 |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=September 11, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151127044738/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/green-shift-touted-as-both-saviour-and-damnation/article1061161/ |archive-date=November 27, 2015 }} On election night, the Liberal Party won 26.26 per cent of the popular vote and 77 of the 308 seats in the House of Commons. At that time, their popular support was the lowest in the party's history, and weeks later Dion announced he would step down as Liberal leader once his successor was chosen.{{cite news |title = Dion resigns but will remain as leader for now |url = https://www.thestar.com/federalelection/article/520583 |access-date = November 13, 2011 |newspaper = Toronto Star |date = October 20, 2008 |first1 = Bruce |last1 = Campion-Smith |first2 = Les |last2 = Whittington |archive-date = March 13, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110313094318/http://www.thestar.com/federalelection/article/520583 |url-status = live }}

File:41stElectionPollingResults.png

However, the 2008–2009 Canadian parliamentary dispute made Dion's continued leadership untenable: an agreement to form a coalition government between the with NDP faced public opposition if it meant Dion was to be become prime minister, even if only until the leadership election.{{cite news|title=Results of CBC News Survey |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/pdf/1069-cbc-results-dec4-final.pdf |publisher=EKOS Research |access-date=November 14, 2011 |date=December 4, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081209235541/http://www.cbc.ca/news/pdf/1069-cbc-results-dec4-final.pdf |archive-date=December 9, 2008 }} Dion thus resigned as leader on December 8, with caucus selecting Ignatieff as interim leader.{{cite news |date=December 10, 2008 |title=Ignatieff named interim Liberal leader |publisher=CBC News |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newly-named-liberal-leader-ignatieff-ready-to-form-coalition-1.698452 |access-date=10 December 2008 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081216061905/http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/12/10/ignatieff-caucus.html |archive-date=2008-12-16}} However, Harper prorogued Parliament before a confidence vote could be scheduled. When parliament resumed on January 28, 2009, the Ignatieff Liberals agreed to support the budget as long as it included regular accountability reports, which the Conservatives accepted. This ended the possibility of the coalition government with the New Democrats.{{cite news |title = Ignatieff okays budget, with conditions |url = https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/article968692.ece |access-date = November 14, 2011 |newspaper = The Globe and Mail |date = January 28, 2009 |first1 = Campbell |last1 = Clark |first2 = Jane |last2 = Taber |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110126185559/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/article968692.ece |archive-date = January 26, 2011 |df = mdy-all }} Ignatieff was formally named leader on May 2, 2009.{{cite news |date=May 2, 2009 |title=Ignatieff slams Harper for 'failure to unite Canada' |publisher=CBC News |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ignatieff-slams-harper-for-failure-to-unite-canada-1.775666 |access-date=16 May 2018 |archive-date=June 16, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230616082756/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ignatieff-slams-harper-for-failure-to-unite-canada-1.775666 |url-status=live }}File:Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff speaks during a news conference in Toronto.jpg speaks during a news conference in Toronto on March 28, 2011]]

By the time Ignatieff was confirmed as party leader, the Liberal Party had a comfortable lead over the governing Conservatives.{{cite news |url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ignatieff-slams-harper-for-failure-to-unite-canada-1.775666 |title = Ignatieff slams Harper for 'failure to unite Canada' |date = May 2, 2009 |publisher = CBC News |access-date = November 9, 2011 |archive-date = January 7, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140107204643/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ignatieff-slams-harper-for-failure-to-unite-canada-1.775666 |url-status = live }}{{cite news |title = Close Federal Race Continues – Tories Down in Quebec Up in Ontario |url = http://www.nanosresearch.com/library/polls/POLNAT-S09-T369E.pdf |access-date = November 14, 2011 |newspaper = Nanos Research |date = May 2, 2009 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111016121527/http://www.nanosresearch.com/library/polls/POLNAT-S09-T369E.pdf |archive-date = October 16, 2011 |df = mdy-all }}{{cite web |title = Close federal race continues |url = http://www.nanosresearch.com/library/polls/POLNAT-S09-T380E.pdf |publisher = Nanos Research |access-date = November 14, 2011 |date = June 27, 2009 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111016113948/http://www.nanosresearch.com/library/polls/POLNAT-S09-T380E.pdf |archive-date = October 16, 2011 |df = mdy-all }} Support fell over the summer as Ignatieff was characterized of "missing in action", and Ignatieff announced on August 31, 2009, that the Liberals would not support the minority Conservative government when Parliament resumed.{{cite news |last = Siddiqui |first = Haroon |title = If Harper is Bush, then Ignatieff is John Kerry |url = https://www.thestar.com/opinion/article/690191 |access-date = November 14, 2011 |newspaper = Toronto Star |date = September 3, 2009 |archive-date = September 13, 2024 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240913225305/https://www.thestar.com/ |url-status = live }}{{cite news |last = Hebert |first = Chantal |title = Absent opposition gives the PM a holiday |url = https://www.thestar.com/canada/columnist/article/686513 |access-date = November 14, 2011 |newspaper = Toronto Star |date = August 26, 2009 |archive-date = September 13, 2024 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240913225305/https://www.thestar.com/ |url-status = live }}{{cite news |title = Liberals won't raise taxes: Ignatieff |url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/liberals-won-t-raise-taxes-ignatieff-1.815328 |access-date = November 9, 2011 |publisher = Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |date = September 2, 2009 |archive-date = October 16, 2015 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151016201454/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/liberals-won-t-raise-taxes-ignatieff-1.815328 |url-status = live }} A month later, on October 1, the Liberals put forth a non-confidence motion; however, the NDP abstained from voting and the Conservative government survived.{{cite news |url = http://ca.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idCATRE58T4BE20091001 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110715175324/http://ca.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idCATRE58T4BE20091001 |url-status = dead |archive-date = July 15, 2011 |title = Canada's government survives non-confidence motion |work = Reuters |date = October 1, 2009 |access-date = April 28, 2010 }} The attempt to force an election, just a year after the previous one, was viewed as a miscalculation, as polls showed that most Canadians did not want another election.{{cite web |title = Parties Virtually Tied as Election Nears in Canada |url = http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/37078/parties_virtually_tied_as_election_nears_in_canada/ |publisher = Angus Reid |access-date = November 14, 2011 |date = September 4, 2009 |url-status = usurped |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120121181708/http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/37078/parties_virtually_tied_as_election_nears_in_canada/ |archive-date = January 21, 2012 |df = mdy-all }} Afterwards, popularity for Ignatieff and his party continued to fall.{{cite news |last = MacDonald |first = Ian |title = Harper tickles while Ignatieff burns |url = http://www2.canada.com/montrealgazette/features/viewpoints/story.html?id=0e1cf966-d164-43b2-873a-76b828a82999 |access-date = November 9, 2011 |newspaper = Montreal Gazette |date = October 9, 2009 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130314151902/http://www2.canada.com/montrealgazette/features/viewpoints/story.html?id=0e1cf966-d164-43b2-873a-76b828a82999 |archive-date = March 14, 2013 |df = mdy-all }} Over the next year and a half, with the exception of a brief period in early 2010, support for the Liberals remained below 30 per cent, and behind the Conservatives.{{cite web |title = Conservatives retain 7-point lead as parties enter election campaign |url = http://www.ekospolitics.com/wp-content/uploads/full_report_march_25_2011.pdf |publisher = EKOS Politics |access-date = November 15, 2011 |date = March 25, 2011 |archive-date = May 16, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110516035013/http://www.ekospolitics.com/wp-content/uploads/full_report_march_25_2011.pdf |url-status = live }}File:Liberale Partei Kanadas Logo.svg, used in the word Libéral in French|left]]

Shortly after the Harper government was found to be in Contempt of Parliament over the Canadian Afghan detainee issue, Ignatieff successfully introduced a motion of no confidence against the government, beginning the 2011 election.{{cite news |url = https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/26/world/americas/26canada.html |title = Canadian Government, Beset by Scandal, Collapses |date = March 25, 2011 |access-date = October 18, 2015 |work = The New York Times |first = Ian |last = Austen |archive-date = September 24, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180924215516/https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/26/world/americas/26canada.html |url-status = live }} The Liberals had considerable momentum when the writ was dropped, and Ignatieff successfully squeezed NDP leader Jack Layton out of media attention by issuing challenges to Harper for one-on-one debates.{{cite news |title = Chance of Harper vs. Ignatieff debate fades |url = https://www.ctvnews.ca/chance-of-harper-vs-ignatieff-debate-fades-1.626022 |access-date = November 14, 2011 |publisher = CTV News |date = March 31, 2011 |archive-date = June 22, 2015 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150622093939/http://www.ctvnews.ca/chance-of-harper-vs-ignatieff-debate-fades-1.626022 |url-status = live }}{{cite news |last = Whittington |first = Les |title = Ignatieff's appeal improving but Harper still leads, poll says |url = https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/politics/article/970557--ignatieff-s-appeal-improving-but-harper-still-leads-poll-says |access-date = November 14, 2011 |newspaper = Toronto Star |date = April 7, 2011 |archive-date = April 10, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110410204307/http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/politics/article/970557--ignatieff-s-appeal-improving-but-harper-still-leads-poll-says |url-status = live }}{{cite news |last = Galloway |first = Gloria |title = Layton remains game despite polls showing he's the odd man out |url = https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/layton-shows-strain-as-polls-suggest-hes-the-odd-man-out/article1978060/ |access-date = November 14, 2011 |newspaper = The Globe and Mail |date = April 8, 2011 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110412213210/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/layton-shows-strain-as-polls-suggest-hes-the-odd-man-out/article1978060/ |archive-date = April 12, 2011 |df = mdy-all }} However, opponents frequently criticized Ignatieff's perceived political opportunism, particularly during the Leaders' debates when Layton criticized Ignatieff for having a poor attendance record for Commons votes: "You know, most Canadians, if they don't show up for work, they don't get a promotion." Ignatieff failed to defend himself against these charges, and the debates were said to be a turning point in the campaign.{{cite news |url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ignatieff-s-liberals-lose-official-opposition-status-1.1055540 |publisher = Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |title = Ignatieff's Liberals lose Official Opposition status |date = May 3, 2011 |access-date = September 3, 2024 |archive-date = June 4, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230604143311/https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ignatieff-s-liberals-lose-official-opposition-status-1.1055540 |url-status = live }}

On election day, the Liberals took the biggest loss in their history. The result was a third-place finish, with only 19 per cent of the vote and returning 34 seats in the House of Commons. Notably, their support in Toronto and Montreal, their power bases for the last two decades, all but vanished. The Conservatives won 40 per cent of the vote and formed a majority government, while the NDP won 31 per cent of the vote and formed the Official Opposition.{{cite web |title = Official Voting Results – Forty-First General Election 2011 |url = http://elections.ca/scripts/ovr2011/default.html |publisher = Elections Canada |access-date = May 21, 2012 |archive-date = May 21, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120521211804/http://www.elections.ca/scripts/ovr2011/default.html |url-status = live }} It marked the first time the Liberals were unable to form either government or the official opposition. Ignatieff was defeated in his own riding and announced his resignation as Liberal leader shortly after. Bob Rae was chosen as the interim leader on May 25, 2011.{{cite news |title = Federal Liberals won't pick new leader for full two years |url = https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/federal-liberals-wont-pick-new-leader-for-full-two-years/article2066673/ |access-date = June 19, 2011 |newspaper = The Globe and Mail |date = June 19, 2011|first = Joan |last = Bryden }}

Pundits widely viewed the 2011 election as a political realignment and questioned the Liberal Party's viability.The Economist said, "the election represents the biggest realignment of Canadian politics since 1993";Economist May 3, 2011 Maclean's writer Andrew Coyne wrote that "the Conservatives are now in a position to replace the Liberals as the natural governing party in Canada."Andrew Coyne, "The West is in and Ontario has joined it: How the election led to an unprecedented realignment of Canadian politics", [http://www.macleans.ca/2011/05/06/a-new-power-couple/ Maclean's May 6, 2011] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130601091534/http://www2.macleans.ca/2011/05/06/a-new-power-couple/ |date=June 1, 2013 }} Books such as The Big Shift by John Ibbitson and Darrell Bricker, and Peter C. Newman's When the Gods Changed: The Death of Liberal Canada, asserted that the Liberals had become an "endangered species".{{cite news |last=McLeod |first=Paul |date=October 22, 2015 |title=Book Review: The Big Shift Explains Why Stephen Harper Will Keep Winning |publisher=Buzzfeed |url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/paulmcleod/book-review-the-big-shift-why-stephen-harper-will-keep-winni#.kk8WgyWkW |access-date=October 22, 2015 |archive-date=October 23, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151023222156/http://www.buzzfeed.com/paulmcleod/book-review-the-big-shift-why-stephen-harper-will-keep-winni#.kk8WgyWkW |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last=Valpy |first=Michael |date=November 25, 2011 |title=Is a Liberal comeback mission impossible? |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/is-a-liberal-comeback-mission-impossible/article4246976/ |access-date=October 22, 2015 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304223625/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/is-a-liberal-comeback-mission-impossible/article4246976/ |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Premiership of Justin Trudeau}}

File:Prime Minister Trudeau's message on Christmas 2023 (0m29s) (cropped).jpg, the 23rd prime minister of Canada (2015–2025)]]

On April 14, 2013, Justin Trudeau, son of former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, was elected leader of the Liberal Party on the first ballot, winning 80% of the vote.{{cite news |title = Justin Trudeau sweeps Liberal leadership with 80% support |url = https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-to-face-off-against-harper-in-question-period-today-1.1317124 |access-date = April 15, 2013 |publisher = Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |date = April 14, 2013 |archive-date = September 29, 2013 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130929153612/http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/trudeau-to-face-off-against-harper-in-question-period-today-1.1317124 |url-status = live }} Following his win, support for the Liberal Party increased considerably, and the party moved into first place in public opinion polls.{{cite news |last = Berthiaume |first = Lee |title = Tory attack ads may be backfiring in favour of Trudeau's Liberals as support rises, new poll shows |url = http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/05/07/tory-attack-ads-may-be-backfiring-in-favour-of-trudeaus-liberals-as-support-rises-new-poll-shows/ |access-date = June 7, 2013 |newspaper = National Post |date = May 7, 2013 |archive-date = September 13, 2024 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240913225306/https://nationalpost.com/category/news/ |url-status = live }}{{cite news |last = Visser |first = Josh |title = Trudeau's Liberals hit historic highs as senate scandal has 'drastic effect' on Tories: poll |url = http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/05/23/trudeaus-liberals-hit-historic-highs-as-senate-scandal-has-drastic-effect-on-tories-poll/ |access-date = June 7, 2013 |newspaper = National Post |date = May 23, 2013 |archive-date = June 7, 2013 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130607130721/http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/05/23/trudeaus-liberals-hit-historic-highs-as-senate-scandal-has-drastic-effect-on-tories-poll/ |url-status = live }} In response, the Conservatives ran a series of ads attempting to "[paint] him as a silly dilettante unfit for public office" and the surge levelled off in the following year.{{cite news |last1=Warnica |first1=Richard |date=October 23, 2015 |title=The Liberal Resurrection: How a Liberal 'lightweight' faced with the longest election campaign in history beat down a Tory majority |url=http://news.nationalpost.com/features/the-liberal-resurrection |access-date=October 25, 2015 |work=National Post |archive-date=November 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211130131312/https://nationalpost.com/category/news/ |url-status=dead }}

In 2014, Trudeau removed all Liberal senators from the Liberal Party caucus. In announcing this, Trudeau said the purpose of the unelected upper chamber is to act as a check on the power of the prime minister, but the party structure interferes with that purpose. Following this move, Liberal senators chose to keep the designation "Liberal" and sit together as a caucus, albeit not one supported by the Liberal Party of Canada. This independent group continued to refer to itself in publications as the Senate Liberal Caucus until 2019.{{cite news|last1=Crawford|first1=Allison|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/senate-liberals-caucus-speaker-1.3347265|title=Senate Liberals unsure how to work with Trudeau government|access-date=January 1, 2016|publisher=CBC News|date=December 3, 2015|archive-date=September 13, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240913225350/https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/senate-liberals-caucus-speaker-1.3347265|url-status=live}}

By the time the 2015 federal election was called, the Liberals had fallen back to third place. Trudeau and his advisors mounted a campaign based on economic stimulus in the hopes of regaining the mantle of being the party that best represented change from the New Democrats.{{cite news|last1=Raj|first1=Althia|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/10/25/justin-trudeau_n_8382304.html|title=Justin Trudeau's Liberals: 'We Had A Plan And We Stuck To It.' And They Won|access-date = October 31, 2015 |work = Huffington Post|date = October 25, 2015}} The campaign was successful, and the Liberals won the election in a dramatic fashion: with 39.5 per cent of the popular vote and 184 seats, it was the first time a party had won a parliamentary majority after placing third in a previous general election.{{cite news|url = https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-34578213|title = Canada election: Liberals sweep to power|access-date = October 20, 2015|work = BBC News|date = October 20, 2015|archive-date = October 20, 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151020035211/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-34578213|url-status = live}}{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/canada/11941852/Canada-election-Liberals-poised-to-win-sweeping-victory-over-Conservatives.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220111/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/canada/11941852/Canada-election-Liberals-poised-to-win-sweeping-victory-over-Conservatives.html |archive-date=January 11, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title = Canada election: Liberals win sweeping victory over Conservatives|access-date = October 20, 2015 |newspaper = The Daily Telegraph|date = October 20, 2015}}{{cbignore}}{{cite news|publisher=CBC News|date=October 19, 2015|access-date=October 20, 2015|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/quebec-results-federal-election-2015-1.3278830|title=Stunning Liberal gains in Quebec as Trudeau wins majority government|archive-date=October 20, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151020024320/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/quebec-results-federal-election-2015-1.3278830|url-status=live}} Chantal Hébert deemed the result "a Liberal comeback that is headed straight for the history books",{{cite news|url = https://www.thestar.com/news/federal-election/2015/10/20/liberal-comeback-headed-for-history-books-hbert.html|title = Liberal comeback headed for history books|access-date = October 25, 2015|work = Toronto Star|date = October 20, 2015|archive-date = October 24, 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151024000551/http://www.thestar.com/news/federal-election/2015/10/20/liberal-comeback-headed-for-history-books-hbert.html|url-status = live}} while Bloomberg's Josh Wingrove and Theophilos Argitis similarly described it as "capping the biggest political comeback in the country’s history."{{cite news |last1=Argitis |first1=Theophilos |last2=Wingrove |first2=Josh |publisher=Bloomberg News |date=October 19, 2015 |access-date=October 27, 2015 |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-20/trudeau-s-liberals-projected-to-win-canada-vote-networks-say |title=Trudeau's Liberals Oust Harper With Surprise Canada Majority |archive-date=October 27, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151027135308/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-20/trudeau-s-liberals-projected-to-win-canada-vote-networks-say |url-status=live }} Spencer McKay, writing for the National Post, suggested that "maybe we've witnessed a revival of Canada's 'natural governing party'".Spencer McKay, "The Great Liberal Comeback" [http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/spencer-mckay-the-great-liberal-comeback National Post Oct 29 2015] {{Webarchive|url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20151119074616/http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/spencer-mckay-the-great-liberal-comeback|date=2015-11-19}}

At the 2019 federal election, Trudeau's Liberal Party lost 20 seats in the House of Commons (lowering its total from 177 to 157) from the time of dissolution, they still won the most seats of any party—enough seats to allow Trudeau to form a minority government.{{cite web |last=Da Silva |first=Chantal |author-link=Chantal Da Silva |date=October 22, 2019 |title=Justin Trudeau wins minority government—what does this mean for America? |url=https://www.newsweek.com/justin-trudeau-canadian-election-minority-government-donald-trump-1466845 |website=Newsweek |access-date=March 23, 2022 |archive-date=April 6, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406174906/https://www.newsweek.com/justin-trudeau-canadian-election-minority-government-donald-trump-1466845 |url-status=live }}{{cite web|title=Trudeau says no plans to form a coalition, will push ahead on Trans Mountain|url=https://globalnews.ca/news/6071193/justin-trudeau-minority-government-plan/|website=Global News|access-date=March 23, 2022|archive-date=April 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406173403/https://globalnews.ca/news/6071193/justin-trudeau-minority-government-plan/|url-status=live}} For the first time since 1979, the party that garnered the largest share of the national popular vote did not win the most seats; the Liberals under Trudeau had 33.1 per cent of the popular vote, while the Conservatives under Andrew Scheer had 34.4 per cent.{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/grenier-election-results-1.5330105|title=Ontario and Quebec keep Liberals in power and Conservatives out|publisher=cbc.ca|date=October 22, 2019|access-date=March 23, 2022|archive-date=April 6, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406194923/https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/grenier-election-results-1.5330105|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://election.ctvnews.ca/historic-opportunity-opposition-leaders-take-stock-after-liberal-minority-win-1.4649796|title='Historic opportunity': Opposition leaders take stock after Liberal minority win|first=Rachel|last=Aiello|date=October 22, 2019|website=Federal Election 2019|access-date=March 23, 2022|archive-date=July 31, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210731183032/https://election.ctvnews.ca/historic-opportunity-opposition-leaders-take-stock-after-liberal-minority-win-1.4649796|url-status=live}} It was also the first time a government took power with less than 35 per cent of the national popular vote since the Conservatives of John A. Macdonald, in 1867, who had 34.8 per cent of the votes.{{Cite news|url=https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/election-2019/canadian-federal-election-2019-liberals-justin-trudeau-win|title=All-time low share of popular vote is enough for Liberals to win power | National Post|newspaper=National Post|date=October 22, 2019|last1=Brean|first1=Joseph|access-date=March 23, 2022|archive-date=July 6, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210706201852/https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/election-2019/canadian-federal-election-2019-liberals-justin-trudeau-win|url-status=live}}

In the 2021 federal election, Trudeau and the Liberals secured a third mandate and his second minority government after winning 160 seats. However, the Liberals again came in second in the national popular vote, behind the Conservatives.{{Cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-votes-2021-election-night-highlights-1.6177106 |title=Federal election latest updates", CBC, September 20, 2021. |access-date=March 23, 2022 |archive-date=March 3, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303012643/https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-votes-2021-election-night-highlights-1.6177106 |url-status=live }} They received 32.6 per cent of the popular vote, the lowest percentage of the national popular vote for a governing party in Canadian history.{{cite news|last=Hopper|first=Tristan|date=September 22, 2021|title=First Reading: The Least Popular Canadian Government Ever Elected|work=National Post|url=https://nationalpost.com/news/politics/election-2021/first-reading-the-least-popular-canadian-government-ever-elected}}

In March 2022, Trudeau's Liberal Party agreed to a confidence and supply deal with the New Democratic Party.{{Cite web |title=Liberals, NDP agree to confidence deal seeing Trudeau government maintain power until 2025 |url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/liberals-ndp-agree-to-confidence-deal-seeing-trudeau-government-maintain-power-until-2025-1.5829116 |website=CTV News |date=March 22, 2022 |access-date=March 23, 2022 |archive-date=March 22, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220322132559/https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/liberals-ndp-agree-to-confidence-deal-seeing-trudeau-government-maintain-power-until-2025-1.5829116 |url-status=live }} In September 2024, Jagmeet Singh announced that he was ending the confidence-and-supply agreement, with NDP sources saying they had "achieved all they could from the agreement."{{cite web |last1=McKenna |first1=Kate |last2=Zimonjic |first2=Peter |title=How the NDP's deal with the Liberals died |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ndp-liberal-confidence-and-supply-parliament-1.7316227 |publisher=CBC News |access-date=12 September 2024 |date=4 September 2024 |archive-date=September 12, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240912064558/https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ndp-liberal-confidence-and-supply-parliament-1.7316227 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Yousif |first1=Nadine |date=September 5, 2024 |title=Why Canadian politics just got more unpredictable |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y3vpp1z91o |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240905235537/https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5y3vpp1z91o |archive-date=September 5, 2024 |access-date=September 6, 2024 |work=BBC News}} Throughout the year, the Liberals have faced declining poll numbers and disappointing results in by-elections, including losses in safe seats such as Toronto—St. Paul's in Toronto and LaSalle—Émard—Verdun in Montreal, and battleground seats such as Cloverdale—Langley City in Vancouver.{{Cite web |last=Major |first=Darren |date=September 10, 2024 |title=Upcoming federal byelections will put Singh and the NDP brand to the test - NDP looking to both hold a Winnipeg seat and pull another away from the Liberals in Montreal |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ndp-byelections-test-singh-leadership-1.7317935 |website=CBC News |access-date=September 11, 2024 |archive-date=September 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240911151244/https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/ndp-byelections-test-singh-leadership-1.7317935 |url-status=live }} The months following these losses saw frequent media stories about internal frustration and discontent with Trudeau's leadership. This appeared to culminate in a caucus meeting where multiple members called on Trudeau to resign. Trudeau emerged from this meeting stating that the party remained "strong and united".{{Cite web |date=2024-10-23 |title=Trudeau says Liberals 'strong and united' despite caucus dissent |url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/trudeau-says-liberals-strong-and-united-despite-caucus-dissent-1.7083855 |access-date=2024-11-20 |website=CTVNews |language=en |archive-date=January 6, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250106153742/https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/trudeau-says-liberals-strong-and-united-despite-caucus-dissent-1.7083855 |url-status=live }} On January 6, 2025, Trudeau prorogued parliament and announced his intent to resign as both party leader and Prime Minister following a leadership election.{{Cite news |last1=Stevis-Gridneff |first1=Matina |last2=Austen |first2=Ian |date=2025-01-06 |title=Canada's Trudeau Is Stepping Down as Party Leader and Prime Minister |url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/01/06/world/canada-trudeau |access-date=2025-01-06 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}

{{Main|Premiership of Mark Carney}}

File:Mark Carney portrait February 2020.jpg, the 24th and current prime minister of Canada (2025–present)]]

On March 9, 2025, Mark Carney was elected leader of the Liberal Party on the first ballot, winning 85.9% of the vote. In the 2025 Canadian federal election which was held on April 28, 2025, the Liberal Party under Carney's leadership which not only gain seats in the Canadian House of Commons, but would also win the popular vote for the first time since 2015, and over 40% of the popular vote for the first time since 2000.{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/takeaways-election-results-1.7521355|title=5 key takeaways from Monday's historic vote|first=Darren|last=Major|publisher=CBC News|date=April 29, 2025|accessdate=April 29, 2025}}{{cite news |last1=Leake |first1=Phil |last2=Benjamin |first2=Alison |last3=Wainwright |first3=Daniel |last4=Carr |first4=Jess |title=How Canada voted - in charts |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4jd39g8y1o |access-date=April 29, 2025 |agency=bbc.com |date=April 29, 2025}}{{cite news |title=Canadian election results |url=https://www.reuters.com/graphics/CANADA-POLITICS/ELECTION-RESULTS/lgpdxggaxpo/ |access-date=April 29, 2025 |agency=reuters.com |date=April 28, 2025}}{{cite news |title=Canada Election Highlights: Mark Carney Wins New Term as Prime Minister |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/04/28/world/canada-election |access-date=April 30, 2025 |agency=The New York Times |date=April 29, 2025 |last1=Stevis-Gridneff |first1=Matina |archive-date=April 30, 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250430060427/https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/04/28/world/canada-election |url-status=live }} The Liberal Party would win 43.7% of the popular vote,{{cite news|url=https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/elections/federal/2025/results/|title=Canada Votes 2025|publisher=CBC|accessdate=April 30, 2025}} the highest margin since 1980.

Scholars and political experts have recently used a political realignment model to explain what was considered a collapse of a dominant party and put its condition in long-term perspective. According to recent scholarship, there have been four party systems in Canada at the federal level since Confederation, each with its own distinctive pattern of social support, patronage relationships, leadership styles, and electoral strategies. Steve Patten identifies four party systems in Canada's political history:Steve Patten, [https://books.google.com/books?id=CxQpqRY5WcEC&q=steve+patten "The Evolution of the Canadian Party System"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230708191424/https://books.google.com/books?id=CxQpqRY5WcEC&q=steve+patten |date=July 8, 2023 }}. in Gagnon, and Tanguay, eds. Canadian Parties in Transition pp. 57–58

• The first party system emerged from pre-Confederation colonial politics, had its "heyday" from 1896 to 1911 and lasted until the Conscription Crisis of 1917, and was characterized by local patronage administered by the two largest parties, the Liberals and the Conservatives.
• The second system emerged following the First World War, and had its heyday from 1935 and 1957, was characterized by regionalism and saw the emergence of several protest parties, such as the Progressives, the Social Credit Party, and the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation.
• The third system emerged in 1963 and had its heyday from 1968 to 1983 and began to unravel thereafter. The two largest parties were challenged by a strong third party, the New Democratic Party (successor to the CCF). Campaigns during this era became more national in scope because of electronic media, and involved a greater focus on leadership. The dominant policy of the era was Keynesian economics.
• The fourth party system has involved the rise of the Reform Party, the Bloc Québécois, and the merger of the Canadian Alliance with the Progressive Conservatives. Most parties moved to one-member-one-vote leadership contests, and campaign finance laws were reformed in 2004. The fourth party system has been characterized by market-oriented policies that generally abandoned Keynesian policies but maintained the welfare state.

Stephen Clarkson (2005) shows how the Liberal Party has dominated all the party systems, using different approaches. It began with a "clientelistic approach" under Laurier, which evolved into a "brokerage" system of the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s under Mackenzie King. The 1950s saw the emergence of a "pan-Canadian system", which lasted until the 1990s. The 1993 election – categorized by Clarkson as an electoral "earthquake" which "fragmented" the party system, saw the emergence of regional politics within a four party-system, whereby various groups championed regional issues and concerns. Clarkson concludes that the inherent bias built into the first-past-the-post system, has chiefly benefited the Liberals.Stephen Clarkson, [http://www.ubcpress.ca/search/title_book.asp?BookID=4502 The Big Red Machine: How the Liberal Party Dominates Canadian Politics] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160103144519/http://www.ubcpress.ca/search/title_book.asp?BookID=4502 |date=January 3, 2016 }} (2005).

The principles of the party are based on liberalism as defined by various liberal theorists and include individual freedom for present and future generations, responsibility, human dignity, a just society, political freedom, religious freedom, national unity, equality of opportunity, cultural diversity, bilingualism, and multilateralism.{{cite web |last = Apps |first = Alfred |title = Building a Modern Liberal Party |url = http://www.liberal.ca/files/2011/11/BuildingaModernLiberalParty.pdf |publisher = Liberal Party of Canada |access-date = November 24, 2011 |pages = 5–9 |archive-date = July 17, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160717212353/http://www.liberal.ca/files/2011/11/BuildingaModernLiberalParty.pdf |url-status = dead }}{{cite web |title = 2009 Constitution |url = http://www.liberal.ca/files/2010/05/lpc-2009-constitution-en.pdf |publisher = Liberal Party of Canada |access-date = November 24, 2011 |archive-date = November 5, 2015 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151105071119/http://www.liberal.ca/files/2010/05/lpc-2009-constitution-en.pdf |url-status = dead }} From the early twentieth century, the Liberal party has favoured a variety of "big tent" policies from both right and left of the political spectrum. When it formed the government from 1993 to 2006, it championed balanced budgets, and eliminated the budget deficit completely from the federal budget in 1995 by reducing spending on social programs or delegating them to the provinces, and promised to replace the Goods and Services Tax in the party's famous Red Book.{{cite news |title = The lesson from Canada on cutting deficits |url = https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/the-lesson-from-canada-on-cutting-deficits/article2243702/singlepage/#articlecontent |access-date = November 24, 2011 |newspaper = The Globe and Mail |date = November 21, 2011 |first1 = Louise |last1 = Egan |first2 = Randall |last2 = Palmer |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111126082138/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/the-lesson-from-canada-on-cutting-deficits/article2243702/singlepage/#articlecontent |archive-date = November 26, 2011 |df = mdy-all }} It also federally legalized same-sex marriage in 2005.

During the 2021 federal election, the Liberal Party of Canada introduced their platform, which included a "Gender and Diversity Impact Summary" for each chapter,{{cite web |title=Forward. For Everyone |url=https://liberal.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/292/2021/09/Platform-Forward-For-Everyone.pdf |publisher=Liberal Party of Canada |access-date=12 May 2022 |archive-date=June 5, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230605150609/https://liberal.ca/wp-content/uploads/sites/292/2021/09/Platform-Forward-For-Everyone.pdf |url-status=live }} as well as six key categories. These included: the pandemic, housing, health care, the economy, climate change, and reconciliation.{{cite news |last1=Aiello |first1=Rachel |title=Liberals unveil 2021 election platform, promising total of $78 billion for post-pandemic rebuild |url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/federal-election-2021/liberals-unveil-2021-election-platform-promising-total-of-78-billion-for-post-pandemic-rebuild-1.5569268?cache=%3FclipId%3D89950 |access-date=12 May 2022 |agency=CTV News |date=1 September 2021 |archive-date=April 22, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230422015537/https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/federal-election-2021/liberals-unveil-2021-election-platform-promising-total-of-78-billion-for-post-pandemic-rebuild-1.5569268?cache=%3FclipId%3D89950 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |title=Liberals unveil 2021 election platform |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/9/1/canadas-liberals-unveil-massive-investment-plan-ahead-of-vote |agency=Al Jazeera |date=1 September 2021 |access-date=May 12, 2022 |archive-date=May 26, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230526003746/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/9/1/canadas-liberals-unveil-massive-investment-plan-ahead-of-vote |url-status=live }}

Key Liberal policies of the 2021 platform included:

• Requiring travellers on interprovincial trains, commercial flights, cruise ships, and other federally regulated vessels be vaccinated against COVID-19.
• Making an investment of $6 billion—on top of $4 billion already committed—to support the elimination of health system waitlists.
• Providing various investments in order to build, preserve, or revitalize 1.4 million new homes by 2025–26.
• Allocating funds to spend $2 billion over the next five years on measures to address the legacy of residential schools with "truth, justice, and healing" initiatives.
• Re-introducing legislation within the first 100 days in office to eliminate the practice of gay conversion therapy for everyone.
• Achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
• Presenting a National Action Plan on Combating Hate by 2022 as part of a renewed Anti-Racism Strategy, including the Black Canadians Justice Strategy.
• Updating the committed number to receive 40,000 Afghan refugees.
• Creating a minimum tax rule so that everyone who earns enough to qualify for the top bracket pays at least 15% each year (the tax rate paid by people earning less than $49,000), removing their ability to artificially pay no tax through excessive use of deductions and credits.
• Establishing a permanent Council of Economic Advisors to provide independent advice to government on long-term growth. The council will be gender- balanced and reflect Canada's diversity.
• Reform economic immigration programs to expand pathways to permanent residence for temporary foreign workers and former international students through the Express Entry points system.
• Setting aside a minimum of $1 billion to support provinces or territories who implement a ban on handguns across their jurisdiction.

{{Main|Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada}}

{{div col|colwidth=30em}}

• George Brown (1867; unofficial)
• Edward Blake (1869–1870; unofficial)
• Alexander Mackenzie (1873–1880)
• Edward Blake (1880–1887)
• Wilfrid Laurier (1887–1919)
• Daniel Duncan McKenzie (1919; interim)
• William Lyon Mackenzie King (1919–1948)
• Louis St. Laurent (1948–1958)
• Lester B. Pearson (1958–1968)
• Pierre Trudeau (1968–1984)
• John Turner (1984–1990)
• Jean Chrétien (1990–2003)
• Paul Martin (2003–2006)
• Bill Graham (2006; interim)
• Stéphane Dion (2006–2008)
• Michael Ignatieff (2008–2011)
• Bob Rae (2011–2013; interim)
• Justin Trudeau (2013–2025)
• Mark Carney (since 2025)

{{div col end}}

{{Portal|Canada|Politics|Liberalism}}

• Liberal Party of Canada leadership elections
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{{Notelist}}

{{Reflist}}

{{refbegin}}

• Bickerton, James, and Alain G. Gagnon. Canadian Politics (5th ed. 2009), 415pp; university textbook
• Bliss, Michael. Right Honourable Men: The Descent of Canadian Politics from Macdonald to Mulroney (1994), essays on Prime Ministers
• Carty, R. Kenneth. Big Tent Politics: The Liberal Party’s Long Mastery of Canada’s Public Life (2015)
• Clarkson, Stephen. The Big Red Machine: How the Liberal Party Dominates Canadian Politics (2005)
• Cohen, Andrew, and J. L. Granatstein, eds. Trudeau's Shadow: the life and legacy of Pierre Elliott Trudeau (1999).
• Gagnon, Alain G., and Brian Tanguay. Canadian Parties in Transition (3rd ed. 2007), 574pp; university textbook
• Granatstein, J.L. Mackenzie King: His Life and World (1977).
• Hillmer, Norman, and Steven Azzi. "Canada's Best Prime Ministers", [http://www.macleans.ca/2011/06/10/canadas-best-prime-ministers Maclean's June 20, 2011 online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202234845/http://www2.macleans.ca/2011/06/10/canadas-best-prime-ministers/ |date=December 2, 2013 }}
• Jeffrey, Brooke. Divided Loyalties: The Liberal Party of Canada, 1984–2008 (2010) [https://www.amazon.com/Divided-Loyalties-Liberal-Canada-1984-2008/dp/1442610654/ excerpt and text search] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160321212235/http://www.amazon.com/Divided-Loyalties-Liberal-Canada-1984-2008/dp/1442610654 |date=March 21, 2016 }}
• Jeffrey, Brooke. Road to Redemption: The Liberal Party of Canada, 2006-2019 (2020)
• Koop, Royce. "Professionalism, Sociability and the Liberal Party in the Constituencies." Canadian Journal of Political Science (2010) 43#04 pp: 893–913.
• {{cite encyclopedia |last = McCall |first = Christina |author2 = Stephen Clarkson |title = Liberal Party |encyclopedia = The Canadian Encyclopedia |url = http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0004670 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20050326083244/http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0004670 |url-status = dead |archive-date = March 26, 2005 }}
• McCall, Christina. Grits: an intimate portrait of the Liberal Party (Macmillan of Canada, 1982)
• Neatby, H. Blair. Laurier and a Liberal Quebec: A Study in Political Management (1973)
• Whitaker, Reginald. The Government Party: Organizing and Financing the Liberal Party of Canada, 1930–1958 (1977)
• {{Cite encyclopedia |publisher = University Associates of Canada |volume = IV |pages = 75–76 |last = Wallace |first = W.S. |title = History of the Liberal Party of Canada |encyclopedia = The Encyclopedia of Canada |location = Toronto |year = 1948 |url = http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/quebechistory/encyclopedia/HistoryoftheLiberalPartyofCanada-CanadianHistory.htm |access-date = November 25, 2008 |archive-date = March 3, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160303210702/http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/quebechistory/encyclopedia/HistoryoftheLiberalPartyofCanada-CanadianHistory.htm |url-status = live }}
• Wearing, Joseph. The L-Shaped Party: The Liberal Party of Canada, 1958–1980 (McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1981)

{{refend}}

{{Commons category|Liberal Party of Canada}}

{{Wikinews|Liberal Party of Canada}}

{{Wikisource|Portal:Liberal_Party_of_Canada|Liberal Party of Canada}}

• {{Official website|https://www.liberal.ca}}
• {{Twitter|liberal_party}}
• [https://wayback.archive-it.org/227/*/http://www.liberal.ca/ Liberal Party of Canada—Canadian Political Parties and Political Interest Groups]—Web archive created by the University of Toronto Libraries
• [https://www.liberal.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/constitution-en.pdf The Liberal Party of Canada Constitution] ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190619191210/https://www.liberal.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/constitution-en.pdf |date=June 19, 2019 }})
• [https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/liberal-party Canadian Encyclopedia entry on the Liberal Party] ({{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151025144208/http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/en/article/liberal-party/ |date=October 25, 2015 }})
• [http://central.bac-lac.gc.ca/.redirect?app=fonandcol&id=105123&lang=eng Liberal Party of Canada fonds] at Library and Archives Canada

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