On September 20, 2021, Canada held its federal election, two years ahead of its scheduled date. The election was held early because Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hoped that he could bring his party, the liberal party, back into the majority so he could pass more bills, according to the New York Post. Chrystia Freeland, the finance minister, said that the Liberal Party not being in the majority made it hard to pass bills, saying “We really saw that it was becoming increasingly just not possible to get the business of the country done.” However, some argue that Trudeau is not telling the full truth, pointing out that all major parts of his legislation regarding COVID-19 have passed. 

When asked about the election results, junior Greg Baldwin said, “I thought the election was close.” Looking at the results, it’s clear to see how close it was. The Liberal Party now holds 158 seats or 46% of the House of Commons seats. In a close second, is the Conservative Party, with 119 seats. The remaining 61 seats are split between the New Democrats (25 seats), the Bloc Quebecois (34 seats), and the Green Party (2 seats).

However, surrounding the election was a controversial photo that showed Trudeau’s face covered in black makeup. Many, including junior Isaac Chu, wondered if he would still hold his position after the photo surfaced. Chu said, “I’m surprised he’s still in office, even though he did black face”. Although the photo hurt Trueadu’s image, he still won the election with just under 50% of the votes.