The race to lead Canada: former central banker vs veteran politician [Video]

The candidates to lead Canada after next week’s election took starkly different paths to the height of national politics.

Mark Carney, the Liberal Party leader, has never held elected office.

The former central banker took over as prime minister just a few weeks ago, after parachuting into politics and winning a race to replace Justin Trudeau as Liberal leader.

Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre was first elected to parliament in 2004, at age 25, and over two decades in Ottawa has moved up the political ranks, polishing his skills in debate and in delivering partisan blows.

But whoever heads the next government will be tasked with managing a fractured relationship with Canada’s largest trading partner and once closest ally, the United States, while dealing with President Donald Trump, who has discussed making America’s northern neighbor a US state.

– Crisis experience –

Carney was born in Fort Smith, a community near the Arctic in …