US Embassy Accuses Canada of Meddling in Midterms; Carney Rejects It
A US Embassy fact sheet says Canadian leaders plan to sway the Nov. 3 midterms. Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada is only responding to US tariffs.
The United States Embassy in Ottawa on Wednesday accused Canadian officials of trying to influence the US midterm elections, publishing a fact sheet that cites remarks by Canadian ministers and provincial leaders less than two weeks before Americans vote on Nov. 3. Mark Carney, Canada’s prime minister, pushed back, saying Canada’s actions are a response to trade measures that Washington started.
The dispute adds a new layer of friction to relations between the two neighbors, which have been strained for months by tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump’s administration and by Canadian countermeasures.
What the embassy said
According to the BBC, the fact sheet says Canadian leaders have brushed aside concerns about “potential interference” while ministers and premiers “openly describe plans to influence American politics” in official documents and public appearances.
The document points to several examples, as reported by the BBC and the Associated Press:
- Meetings between Canadian officials and US Democrats.
- Comments by Mélanie Joly, Canada’s industry minister, about aiming retaliatory tariffs at Republican-led states. Asked what she expected on tariffs if Democrats won the midterms, Joly had said, “That’s exactly why I’m meeting so many governors and potential presidential candidates,” the BBC reported.
- Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s call for Ottawa to consider more retaliatory tariffs on goods from states described as politically important to the administration’s base, and his province’s airing of a television ad featuring former President Ronald Reagan criticizing tariffs.
- A list of 11 Canadians the embassy said had been charged or sentenced for illegally voting in US elections dating back to 2012.
The AP noted that the fact sheet did not tie the illegal-voting cases to the Canadian government. The US Justice Department says it has arrested more than 200 people since the start of 2026 for illegal voting by noncitizens, a number election experts describe as small relative to the tens of millions of Americans who vote, the AP reported.
How Canada responded
Carney was asked about the allegations at an event in Ontario where he, Joly and Ford announced an aid package of roughly C$8.7 billion (US$6.2 billion) for steelmakers, automakers and critical mineral development hurt by US tariffs. Rather than addressing each claim, he said the United States had initiated the trade actions and that Canada’s response was meant to “protect Canadian jobs, to protect Canadian companies and develop our economy,” according to the BBC.
Carney also argued that tariffs are hurting both sides. He said Canadian auto exports to the United States had fallen by more than 10% and US auto exports to Canada by more than 20%, the AP reported. “Tariffs make both our industries weaker and reduce choice for our families,” he said. He added that he had spoken with Trump at length about trade and other issues, including Iran and the Middle East, but saw no sign of a breakthrough.
Ford said he had “no interest at all” in interfering in US elections and that American voters would decide the outcome, the BBC reported. Joly had already denied the accusation last week, saying Canada would “never accept that also being done to us in Canada” and that her trips to the United States were aimed at attracting investment.
Daniel Béland, a political science professor at McGill University in Montreal, told the AP that the examples in the fact sheet are “not genuine examples of foreign interference.” He warned the dispute could lead to “Blame Canada” rhetoric after the election results come in.
Background
The fact sheet follows earlier warnings from US officials. Pete Hoekstra, the US ambassador to Canada, said in a podcast interview this month that American officials were “closely watching” Canadian politicians for signs of interference and told them to keep their “nose out” of US politics, The Canadian Press reported, as published by Global News. Hoekstra cited Ontario’s Reagan ad, Joly’s comments and remarks by former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau criticizing US tariffs during a September speech at Brown University.
Peter Navarro, a White House trade adviser, had also warned Ottawa last month that “if you interfere in our elections in Maine or Michigan, you will pay even more dearly,” according to The Canadian Press.
The Reagan ad has been a flashpoint since Trump halted trade talks with Canada after it aired during the 2025 World Series. Carney called off a later round of negotiations in August, accusing Washington of making unreasonable demands, The Canadian Press reported. The AP said Trump has imposed 50% tariffs on a range of Canadian goods and has said he wants to move auto production from Canada to the United States.
What comes next
The accusations arrive during an already tense week for the relationship. Some Trump administration officials faced criticism in Canada over comments about Alberta’s referendum on separating from Canada, which voters rejected, the BBC reported. A petition calling for Hoekstra’s removal had gathered more than 280,000 signatures.
Ford said Canada’s relationship with the United States has changed permanently and will not return to its old form regardless of who controls Congress or the White House, according to the AP. The midterm elections will determine control of both chambers of Congress for the final two years of Trump’s term.
