Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau "resigns as prime minister if successor is chosen"

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who has been threatened with no confidence in the opposition coalition's cabinet, has announced he will resign if a successor is chosen.

Trudeau held a news conference and said he would step down as party leader of the ruling Liberal Party but would remain in office until a successor was elected.

Trudeau was criticized for failing to properly deal with Trump's tariff threats and reportedly made the decision after polls suggested the ruling party would lose the general election and was pressured to leave office.

As Trudeau has said he will suspend his activities until March, he will remain prime minister until Trump's inauguration, when he declared in his first executive order on the 20th that he will impose 25% tariffs on Canada.

Reuters reported that calls for an early general election could grow as new political leadership is needed to counter Trump's high tariffs.

Trudeau was sworn in as prime minister in November 2015 and won re-election twice, but his approval rating has fallen since two years ago due to rising prices and housing shortages.