Why Canada is going to snap elections: comment by Shahen Mirakian

Canada will hold snap parliamentary elections on April 28. Prime Minister Mark Carney, who has only been in office for a few days, has asked Governor General Mary Simon to dissolve parliament. Carney said he needed a strong mandate to counter the threat posed by US President Donald Trump. Now, for the first time in nearly three years, the Liberals, seeking a fourth mandate, are leading in the polls while support for the Conservatives is shrinking, according to the CBC Poll Tracker. That suggests the Liberals, of which Carney is the leader, would have a three-in-four chance of winning a majority of seats if the election were held now.

Alpha News spoke with Shahen Mirakian, chair of the Armenian National Committee of Canada, on the topic.

“If the election had been held three months earlier, the Conservative forces would have won. If people were asked at that time which party they were in favor of, they would have said the conservative party, which is closer to the current policies of the United States,” he said.

Mirakian noted that Canada’s current policies have a different focus, so it is difficult to voice Armenian issues.

“It is very difficult to raise our issues today because the only serious issue now is the relationship between Donald Trump and Canada,” Mirakian added.