Liberal MP Ken McDonald Says He Will Not Seek Re-election

A stage for the Liberal Party is seen at the Palais des Congres in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on Oct. 21, 2019. Stephane Mahe/Reuters

Liberal MP Ken McDonald, a Newfoundland MP who has broken with his party on carbon tax votes multiple times, has announced he will not run for re-election.

“I met with the prime minister on June 17, and I actually told him at that point that my name will not be on the next federal election ballot,” Mr. McDonald said during a July 2 interview on the Tim Powers Show on VOCM.

“Whenever the election is called, you can guarantee it, my name will not be on a federal election ballot.”

Travelling long distances between his riding of Avalon and Ottawa and missing out on seeing his grandkids play sports are two of the driving factors in his decision, Mr. McDonald said.

“You miss out on a lot of that stuff, and if I stay till the end of the term—which would be a little over a year from now—that would be 10 years that I will be going back and forth to Ottawa. For me, that’s enough,” he said, adding that he has also had conversations about running for politics provincially but has made “no commitments.”

Mr. McDonald made headlines on Oct. 4, 2023, when he was the only Liberal MP who voted in favour of a Conservative motion to repeal the federal carbon tax. The Newfoundland MP also voted in favour of a similar motion back in October of 2022.

Mr. McDonald said Oct. 5 he voted against the carbon tax as a way to show support for Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey, who had asked Ottawa to do more to minimize the tax’s impact on the province and Atlantic Canada.

Mr. McDonald has said many people in his primarily rural riding have told him the carbon tax has been making it more difficult for them to afford to buy necessities and heat their homes.

Mr. McDonald did not vote in favour of a November 2023 motion to scrap the carbon tax following the Liberals’ announcement of a three-year carbon tax exemption for home heating oil. The government also increased subsidies for electric heat pumps.

During the interview on VOCM, Mr. McDonald was asked about the Liberals’ June 24 surprise loss in the byelection of Toronto–St. Paul’s riding. The Conservatives received 42.1 percent of the votes compared with 40.5 percent for the Liberal candidate, resulting in the party losing a seat it held since 1993.

Mr. McDonald called the byelection a “big loss for the Liberal Party,” and said it was a riding that the party was “used to winning and counting on.” The Liberal MP said he did not blame his Liberal colleagues in the ridings surrounding Toronto–St. Paul’s for being worried, adding, “I would be worried too.”

When Liberal MP Wayne Long sent an email to caucus last week saying that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should step down, Mr. McDonald was one of the ones who responded, saying “well said.”

Former Liberal cabinet minister Catherine McKenna and former Liberal MP Wayne Easter have openly called for Mr. Trudeau to step down.

Liberal MP Chandra Arya said on social media he’s not a member of Mr. Trudeau’s “Super Fans Club,” but said Mr. Trudeau should stay on as leader.

Mr. Trudeau told reporters on July 3 that he’s listening to his caucus but would not say whether he would call an in-person meeting to address the byelection loss.

“I’m in the process of listening to the whole caucus, and not just from [members] who speak to media,” Mr. Trudeau said in French while making an announcement in his Montreal riding of Papineau on July 3.

Mr. McDonald did not respond to The Epoch Times’ request for comment before press time.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.