Canada: Trudeau’s Liberals win minority government, CBC projects | Al Jazeera

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party has won a minority government, the country’s public broadcaster projected, after a close election battle against the opposition Conservatives.

CBC News reported late on Monday that the Liberals would get the most seats in Canada’s 44th parliament, but would fall short of the 170-seat threshold needed for a majority.

Liberal candidates won or were leading in 152 electoral districts – known as ridings – just before 11pm EST (03:00 GMT), CBC projected.

The final results may not be released on Monday, Canadian media have reported, as election officials will begin counting hundreds of thousands of mail-in ballots on Tuesday morning.

In what experts said was a push for a majority, Trudeau triggered the snap election in mid-August, telling voters he wanted them to have a say over how the country finishes its fight against the coronavirus.

But he faced a tough challenge from the Conservatives, headed by Erin O’Toole, and experts said Trudeau, who has been prime minister since 2015, struggled to convince much of the electorate about why the election was necessary during the pandemic.