Minister MacAulay endorses Mark Carney for Liberal leader

The Liberal Party of Canada will choose a new leader on March 9

Canada’s federal minister of agriculture announced which candidate he’s supporting in the Liberal leadership race.

In a 23-second post on his X account, Lawrence MacAulay endorsed the candidate he feels is best for the country’s economy.

I've been a Liberal for a long time and folks have been asking who I'm supporting in the upcoming leadership race.

Well, I believe that @MarkJCarney is the person who can continue growing our economy, rebuild the Liberal Party, and set Canada - and Canadians - up for success. pic.twitter.com/zfBJVIStKA

— Lawrence MacAulay (@L_MacAulay) January 27, 2025

“I know Canadians are concerned about the economy, and so am I,” he said from his home in Midgell, P.E.I. “That is why I support Mark Carney for the leader of the Liberal Party. I hope you can too. Thank you very much.”

Farms.com contacted Minister MacAulay’s office Monday morning asking about who MacAulay will support in the race and why.

The minister’s office responded shortly before the social media post went up.

The Liberal Party of Canada approved six candidates to run in the race to replace Justin Trudeau as party leader and prime minister.

In addition to Carney, the candidates are:

• Chrystia Freeland (former deputy prime minister and finance minister)
• Karina Gould (former government House leader)
• Jaime Battiste (Nova Scotia MP)
• Frank Baylis (former Montreal MP)
• Ruby Dhalla (former Ontario MP)

Freeland, Gould and Carney are seen as the front runners and have received support from caucus colleagues.

Carney has garnered the most endorsements with 52, CBC reported on Jan. 27, not including Minister MacAulay’s support. His other supporters include Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly and Nova Scotia MP Kody Blois.

Freeland has 26 supporters in the Liberal party, according to CBC’s report.

Those people include former ag minister Marie-Claude Bibeau and former housing minister Sean Fraser.

Gould’s two endorsements are from MPs Pam Damoff and Lisa Hepfner.

The Liberal Party of Canada will announce its new leader on Sunday, March 9.

Parliament is prorogued until March 24.