Mark Carney says he’s ‘taking steps’ for possible electoral run

Mark Carney signalled he's considering a future electoral run while also taking shots at Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre in a recent interview.

Mark Carney said he is thinking about running for elected office in Canada, but remained guarded about when or where, in a conversation with Liberal MP Nate Erskine-Smith.

The conversation was the clearest signal yet from the former governor of the Bank of Canada that he is eyeing a more political future, and comes weeks after he was tapped to chair an economic advisory task force for the Liberal Party and the prime minister.

Carney joined Erskine-Smith on his podcast in an episode published on Friday.

The MP for Beaches—East York, who has already announced he will not run in the next federal election, talked about the difference between “giving advice and being a decision maker” before asking Carney, “Are you going to put your name on a ballot at some point?”

“I’m taking steps that support that,” Carney replied.

Erskine-Smith asked him later in the conversation whether he would take on a role as a backbench MP before rising to a more prominent role in the party.

“You can’t map these things out. Of course, there’s value in that,” Carney said in response.

Carney went on to list reasons why he supports the Liberal Party, arguing the incumbent government holds “the right combination of a social conscience and social priorities” while still prioritizing a strong economy.