PM Trudeau says he's 'quite certain' of U.S. election results as world waits for Trump to concede

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau congratulated U.S. president-elect Joe Biden and vice president-elect Kamala Harris on their victory declared over the weekend, and indicated that Canadians can be “quite certain” of the results and confident in the American electoral process, “as it has unfolded.”

“I think it’s important to remind people of the strength of American democratic systems and the insinuations designed to evaluate and...tabulate election results,” Trudeau said. “We have confidence in the processes that have operated in the United States and we’ll continue to demonstrate that.”

“We will continue to work with the current American administration until January 20th, after which we will work with the new administration...We’ve demonstrated an ability to stand up and defend Canadian interests throughout, which we will do as we move forward.”

When asked about current U.S. President Donald Trump contesting the results, the prime minister responded with a more general message about continuing to push forward Canadian interests.

“My message to every American president is that I will work to defend Canadian interests, that’s my job,” Trudeau said. “My job is to make sure that we’re working well with the current administration and that we will work well with the incoming administration.”

“That’s what Canadians expect of me.”

The prime minister went on to highlight that over the past four years of working with a “fairly protectionism American administration” the federal government has been able to “stand up” for Canadians, including renegotiating NAFTA and pushing back against tariffs to “defend” steel and aluminum workers.

“Creating or imposing barriers on trade between Canada and the U.S. not only hurts Canada, but also hurts workers and companies in the United States,” Trudeau said. “The integration of our supply chains, the close collaboration and cooperation between businesses and people on both sides of the border, means it’s always better for us to have free-flowing goods and opportunities on both sides of the border, as we work together to succeed in an increasingly competitive global market.”

The prime minister also stated that it is a “welcome sign” that Biden has indicated that climate change is a “top priority” for his administration.