Toronto: Anita Anand, an Indian-Canadian Cabinet Minister, has decided to run in the next Federal election. This is a change from her earlier plan to leave politics and go back to teaching. She says she is motivated by the serious problems Canada faces, especially threats from the United States regarding tariffs.
On Friday, Anand posted on social media, “Our country is facing a big crisis. These are important times for Canada’s future, and I can’t step away now. I am excited to keep serving and will run in the next election.”
Originally, Anand announced she would leave politics on January 11, just days after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he would resign once a new leader is chosen for the Liberal Party. That process is set to finish by March 9. Even though the Federal election is scheduled for October 2025, it could happen earlier.
Mark Carney, a former central banker, is likely to be the new leader and could become Canada’s next Prime Minister. Anand joined Carney for an event in her riding of Oakville on Friday night.
In her statement, Anand said Canada is at a “crucial moment” in history. She emphasized that since her January announcement to leave public life, the situation has only become more serious. “Illegal tariffs are being threatened, and our neighbor is talking about annexing us,” she noted.
In the last seven weeks, Anand has been very active in dealing with issues between Canada and the U.S. Currently, she serves as the Minister of Transport and Internal Trade. Anand was first elected to the House of Commons in 2019 from Oakville and successfully kept her seat in 2021. After new ridings were drawn in 2022, her riding split into Oakville East and Oakville West.
Anand is the first Hindu Cabinet minister in Canada and was seen as a possible candidate for party leadership, but she made it clear in January that she would not run to succeed Trudeau. During that announcement, she said, “I will honorably serve until the next election.” Before her political career, Anand was a law professor at the University of Toronto.
Since becoming a minister in 2019, she has held several important roles, including Minister of Public Services and Procurement, where she played a key part during the Covid-19 pandemic by helping to buy vaccines. In 2021, she became the Minister of National Defence and later President of the Treasury Board. Last year, she took on the role of Minister of Transport and Internal Trade.
Leave a Reply