Carney campaigning in battleground B.C. ridings as election day approaches

Liberal Leader Mark Carney departs Montreal, Que., on Wednesday, April 23, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Liberal Leader Mark Carney is making several stops in B.C. today as his campaign looks to pick up ridings now held by the Conservatives and the NDP.

Polls suggest the race in British Columbia is tight, with voters divided between the Liberals and the Conservatives.

Carney held a news conference today at the Empress Hotel in Victoria, where he vowed to “protect” B.C. from U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney departs Montreal, Que., on Wednesday, April 23, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

He said the province is being targeted by U.S. tariffs.

Carney is expected to make short stops later today in B.C. ridings now held by the Conservatives and the NDP before holding a rally in Surrey, B.C., tonight.

One of the ridings he’s visiting is Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, which has been held by the NDP since 2015 and is shaping into a pitched battle among the Liberals, NDP and Conservatives, according to polls.

— Written by Anja Karadeglija in Victoria, B.C., and Catherine Morrison in Ottawa

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 23, 2025.