Mark Carney’s Liberals Win Minority Government
The Story: Prime Minister Mark Carney has won a Minority Government following a short-tenured campaign in the lead up to which his Liberal Party recovered from a 25 point polling deficit. After all polls reported, Carney had secured 169 seats, the Conservatives had won 143 seats, the Bloc Quebecois had won 23 seats, the NDP had won a dismal 7 seats, and the Green Party had won 1 seat.
The Liberal electoral recovery began after United States President Donald Trump threatened to levy heavy tariffs on Canada and floated the idea of Canada becoming the “51st State.”
As a result, newly-minted Liberal Leader Carney’s “Canada Strong” message began to resonate with left-wing voters who united behind the Liberal banner. This left-wing coalescence drastically lowered the NDP’s vote share and allowed the Liberals to overcome the Conservative Party’s best popular vote total since 1988.
King Charles III is now scheduled to read the speech from the throne in the House of Commons on May 27, after which the Carney Government will face its first confidence motion which will require 172 votes to pass.
The Significance: Over the last decade, the Liberal Party has systematically implemented a program of social reform that includes euthanasia, the criminalization of pastoral counseling on matters of sexuality, the legalization of marijuana, the promotion of abortion, and much more. Because of this, the re-election of the Liberal Government appears to be a death blow to the cause of righteousness in Canada–especially given the seeming certainty of a Conservative victory just a few months ago. Despite this, however, we must remember that God’s activity in governmental affairs does not often resemble our own plans.
God raises up kings and brings them down, but he does not do so according to merely human strategies. Instead, in his divine sovereignty, he is weaving a redemptive narrative that will result in the conquering return of Christ and the triumph of his church. Although the persistent success of secular progressivism is a discouraging reality in our own country, we must not believe that it will last forever. Instead, we know that good will soon triumph over evil. Until then, we must continue to fight joyfully and expectantly–knowing that our efforts will one day be vindicated.
Read More: Courage Media, “The Trump Effect Swung the Canadian Election”
Future Liberal Policy May Include IVF Funding, Removal of Charitable Status
The Story: Although elected on a “moderate” platform, Liberal Prime Minister Mark Carney’s governing agenda appears to include two major policy initiatives which should be of deep concern to Canadian Christians: the removal of charitable tax status for religious organizations and the funding of embryo-destroying in-vitro fertilization (IVF).
On December 16, 2024, the Liberal-led Federal Finance Committee made 462 recommendations for Budget 2025. Among them, two stand out for our purposes:
“Recommendation 429: No longer provide charitable status to anti-abortion organizations.”
“Recommendation 430: Amend the Income Tax Act to provide a definition of a charity which would remove the privileged status of ‘advancement of religion’ as a charitable purpose.”
The recommendation to “remove the privileged status of ‘advancement of religion’ as a charitable purpose” was brought to national prominence as a result of local Conservative candidates raising it again as an election issue. Only Conservatives had voted against the recommendation. No other party represented in the previous Parliament, nor their local candidates, have since renounced the recommendation. The recommendation to “no longer provide charitable status to anti-abortion organizations” has received less attention. The Liberal Party platform also included a promise to expand IVF funding.
The Significance: Abortion is the unjustified killing of a human person, crafted by God in His own image. An unborn child was the first person recorded to rejoice at the as-yet unborn Christ (Luke 1:41), fulfilling the prophecy that he (not some other entity that would later become him) would be filled with the Holy Spirit, even in the womb (Luke 1:5). Because of this, the Government’s plan to expand funding for in-vitro fertilization to $20,000 per cycle—a procedure that destroys multiple preborn human beings in almost every cycle—is a direct assault on the dignity of God’s image bearers.
Furthermore, to allow charitable status for organizations that will help a mother kill her child, but not organizations that will help a mother keep her child, is not even “pro-choice”. Rather, it is the ultimate fulfillment of Proverbs 8:36, where God’s wisdom says, “Those who hate me, love death.” Advocacy for the preborn is a duty of Christians (Proverbs 24:11- 12; Isaiah 1:17; James 1:27), and even if they suppress our advocacy, they cannot hold back God’s own (Psalm 10:12-15; Matthew 25:34-40).
Religious charities make up about 40% of all Canadian charities. Thus, this recommendation is likely to increase tax revenue, but at the expense of these charitable activities. The Bible teaches that helping the needy is a duty for Christians (Ephesians 4:28), but still voluntary, rather than legally compelled, as through taxation (Acts 5:4). Furthermore, Cardus, a Christian think tank, estimates that the economic and social benefit of religious congregations in Canada is $16.5 billion in excess of all tax exemptions and credits—or 10.47 times the value of all tax exemptions and credits. This means, if a religious organization’s economic and social benefit were to fall by even 10% – a near certainty – as a result of losing the ability to issue tax receipts and having to pay taxes on revenues, society as a whole would be worse off. This would particularly hurt the poor and taunt their maker (Proverbs 14:31). This is before accounting for the inestimable worth of worshipping the Lord of Glory (Matthew 26:11) and seeing the spiritually dead raised to a living hope (I Peter 1:3).
Elections are not, in themselves, defiling, as many Christians seem to think. But they can reveal defilement for which personal and national repentance may be necessary. In this case, many Canadians and Christians would not have known of this attempt to throw off the supposed shackles of heaven (Psalm 2:1-6) without an election.
Read More: Raymond de Souza, National Post, “Proposal to strip religious groups of charitable tax status would eviscerate Canada’s charities”
Poilievre Likely to Stay on as Conservative Leader
The Story: In the aftermath of the election, it appears likely that Pierre Poilievre will continue as Conservative leader despite losing both the election and his own riding. Poilievre appears to have the backing of his caucus due to his success in attracting new and younger voters, gaining 23 additional seats, and achieving the highest percentage of votes for a Conservative party since Mulroney’s victory in 1988. Pro-Life Alberta MP Damien Kurek has also agreed to temporarily step aside to allow Poilievre to run in his riding of Battle River—Crowfoot, a Conservative stronghold.
Less certain is the position of Poilievre’s high-profile advisor Jenni Byrne. Byrne has alienated many potential allies by stoking conflict with conservative provincial premiers Doug Ford and Tim Houston. She also interfered in multiple local candidate selections which saw pro-life candidate Gerrit Van Dorland disqualified over false pretenses, and other pro-life candidates such as former leadership contender Pierre Lemieux be passed over in favour of her preferred candidates. These actions have resulted in widespread calls for her firing or resignation, but so far Poilievre has offered his support.
The other main parties have all seen a decrease in their fortunes, with the NDP facing the most precipitous drop off. According to an Abacus poll, the party only managed to maintain 38% of their vote from the previous election. This led to the decimation of the party, which now only holds 7 seats and does not meet the threshold to be recognized as an official party in Parliament. This gives them the same standing as the Green Party, which saw only Elizabeth May returned to Parliament. For his part, Jagmeet Singh, who once had the support in place to be leader of the Official Opposition, placed third in his riding and immediately resigned as NDP leader.
The Bloc Quebecois, meanwhile, saw a loss of 10 seats but remains in a strong position to influence national politics due to the minority status of the governing Liberals.
The Significance: Poilievre’s hardline stance against any law limiting abortions makes his candidacy for Prime Minister and his continued leadership of the Conservative Party a contentious issue for Christians. Few Christians were ever under the illusion that Poilievre was an ally, but his vocal support for killing children in the womb caught many traditional conservative voters off guard. Additionally, his silence on the issues of arson attacks on Christian church buildings and assisted suicide expansion to those with mental health conditions were notable.
However, Poilievre now faces the task of maintaining the support of a caucus that, by some estimates, is nearly 60% pro-life. As caucus has now voted to retain the right to remove their leader, he may need to strike a more congenial tone. With the correct pressure from grassroots supporters, Poilievre could be forced to—at the very least—guarantee free votes on abortion. Christians should continue to loudly raise concerns with the Party, because if it’s possible to ignore us, they will.
Read More: Jonathon Van Maren, The Bridgehead, “What’s next for Canadian social conservatives?”
Rankings: Canada’s Press Freedom Score Falls
The Story: Canada fell to 21st place in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index, down 7 spots in just one year, and 13 spots since 2015. Global scores fell across the board in the annual temperature-check from Reporters Without Borders, making Canada’s slide in the rankings even more concerning in context. Worse still, Canada’s scores fell in every category measured by the World Press Freedom Index—political, economic, legal, social, and journalist safety—with social trust in the media seeing the steepest decline.
The Significance: Christians, as lovers of The Truth, should seek truth at all costs (Proverbs 23:23). We know that powerful people—in the government and in the private sector—revel in immorality and mourn when it is exposed and destroyed (Revelation 18:3, 9-20). We also know that the justifications of their immorality are likely to seem right until they are cross-examined by those with the skill to do it (Proverbs 18:17). While losing trust in particular media figures or institutions may be justified–especially as they are increasingly funded by the politicians they are meant to be exposing–Christians should be concerned if the overall truth-seeking environment in Canada is decaying even faster than it is globally. Of course, if we find ourselves lacking wisdom, we must ask of God, as He tells us (James 1:5). After all, we are not called to seek truth, wisdom, and knowledge at any cost out of pure self-denial, but because they are worth any cost (Proverbs 3:13-24).
Further Reading: Sheila Gunn Reid, Independent Press Gallery, “Canada’s Press Freedom Drops Sharply Under Carney, Says Independent Press Gallery”
Quick Hits
American Cardinal Elected Pope: Chicago-born canon lawyer Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected as the earthly head of the Catholic Church on Thursday, taking the papal name Leo XIV. Something of a surprise choice, he was elected by a supermajority (over 60%) of his fellow cardinals after only four ballots. Pope Leo previously served as the superior general of the Order of Saint Augustine, and later as a bishop in Peru. Appointed as Cardinal in 2023, he replaced Canadian Cardinal Marc Oulette as head of the Dicastery of Bishops, the institution responsible for recommending bishops to the Pope for appointment.
Leo XIV has been a vocal opponent of teaching gender ideology to children, stating that “it seeks to create genders that don’t exist”. He has also opposed homosexuality, the adoption of children by same-sex couples, and abortion. He has also criticized the Trump administration’s treatment of immigrants—seemingly due to a perceived lack of distinction between violent criminals and those fleeing wars, famine, or pestilence.
Read More: Travis K. Kircher, WORLD News, “Catholic Church introduces first-ever American pope”
New Poll Finds 36% of Albertans support leaving Confederation: a new poll from Angus Reid has found that 36% of Albertans are leaning toward voting yes in a potential referendum on Alberta’s sovereignty. The poll also found that a large majority—65%—of UCP supporters would vote yes in a referendum.
The rise of the Alberta independence movement presents a major challenge not only to Prime Minister Mark Carney, but also to Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who recently outlined several new proposals to assert Alberta’s jurisdiction—including allowing a proposed referendum vote in 2026. Albertans have long had grievances with the framework of Confederation, including significant underrepresentation in the appointed Senate and repeated targeting of Alberta’s oil and gas industry.
Read More: CityNews, “36% of Albertans and majority of UCP voters want to leave Canada: new poll”