- The 2025 elections in Canada, Australia and Singapore together make plain a rejection of the form of polarising, right-wing populism often now associated with Donald Trump.
- In Canada, Mark Carney’s possible resurrection promoted his fledgling candidacy by not only challenging Trump’s rhetoric but also by touting himself as a defender of Canadian sovereignty and of Canadian democratic institutions.
- In Australia, the ‘Trump effect’ failed as conservatives here tried getting down and dirty with culture wars, wedging and starting fights based on social issues, leaving younger, urban voters, especially Gen Z, put off by the lack of progressive values, inclusivity, and climate action.
- Singapore feels vulnerable as the electorate shifted toward the ruling party because they believed the incumbent was best equipped to manage the chaos and uncertainty brought on by Trump’s policies.
Donald Trump’s re-election as US president holds the potential to alter the political landscape on a global level. With his incoming administration eschewing traditional diplomatic courtesy in favour of a vigorous international pressure campaign that already seems to be working, President-elect Donald Trump’s disruptive force is being felt all over the world, from east to west. This makes 2025 a year of uncertainty and unpredictability.
In a significant political shift, the recent Canadian elections have marked a new chapter for the Liberal party following the resignation of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The party has since rallied behind Mark Carney, who was selected to lead the country as Canada’s new Prime Minister. Carney, a former Governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, has quickly moved to consolidate his leadership by strategically dissolving parliament and calling for fresh elections. This bold is seen as an effort to secure renewed mandate from Canadians, reintroduce the liberal party under his vision and strengthen its political legitimacy. The liberal party has secured 170 out of 343 seats in the recent federal election, falling short of a majority of 172 and thus forming a minority government. These outcomes include increased influence from other political parties in the decision-making process in the coming days. The upcoming days are expected to serve as a critical test of Carney’s leadership. Meanwhile, the opposition parties, including the New Democratic Party and the conservative party led by Pierre Poilievre, have experienced significant setbacks due as the growing political influence of US President Donald Trump may have played a role in reshaping voter sentiment, contributing to the results across the spectrum. While this election has also had the largest voter turnout of 7 million, with 69 % of registered voters.
The election campaign with significantly influenced by the US President’s imposition of tariffs and suggestions about making Canada the 51st American state. This led to search in Nationalist sentiment among Canadian voters and Carney in his victory speech, He took a strong stance on national sovereignty declaring that Canada will “ never be part of the US, directly come to ring the US President’s provocative suggestion and criticized Trump’s ambitions for Canadian resources, warning that they vowed to maintain counter- tariffs measures until the US commits to fair trade which gained more votes which affected the Conservative Party’s appeal. Pierre Poilievre lost his parliamentary seat in Carleton to Liberal candidate Bruce Fanjoy. This loss was symbolic of the broader electoral challenges faced by conservatives. Under the new leadership of Carney he sought to convince that his experience handling economic issues makes him the suitable leader to deal with Trump while tapping into issues like cost of living, crimes, and housing crises and liberal party manage to revitalize its image and campaign as the approach appealed to voters seeking stability amid International tensions, contributing to their electoral success. The Trump stance has significantly shaped Carney’s cabinet formation. He has positioned a 38-member cabinet to confront their external pressure. The appointment of Anita Anand as foreign minister and Dominic Le Blanc to focus on trade highlights a strategic shift to safeguard Canada’s autonomy. Canada’s liberals have edged closer to a majority after winning Quebec’s Terrebonne district by a single vote in a judicial recount. However, a voter claims her ballot cast for Bloc Québécois was not counted due to a postal code error, which could force a by-election. The results are pending, where liberals hope to gain another seat with growing tensions unfolding as PM Carney faces off US President Trump over trade, sovereignty, and Canadian independence.
While a similar trend can be seen in the recent Australian elections held on May 3rd, 2025, Anthony Albanese has led Australia’s Labour Party with 86 seats to a stunning landslide re-election victory, defying the “incumbency curse” as the Conservative Liberal- National coalition suffers a crushing defeat. Albanese declared the result a mandate for “ fairness, aspiration, and opportunities for all,” while Coalition leader Peter Dutton accepted full responsibility, with his Trump-style campaign widely seen as a misstep. Amid global instability and a revived Trump effect, Australians voted for continuity and Central leadership over populist politics. The influence of President Trump played a significant negative role in the outcome for Australia’s conservative liberal party. Voter backlash against Trump’s volatile leadership style, perceived interference in Global affairs, contributed to a broader rejection of conservative politics associated with him. Liberal leader Peter Dutton was previously seen as a strong contender, but suffered a major defeat, even losing his seat. His hard-liner stances on crime, immigration, and remote work policies, along with campaign slogans and appointments that echoed Trump, such as proposing a Ministry of government efficiency and using rhetoric like make Australia great again. These comparisons damaged the liberals’ image, particularly among younger and moderate voters. The coalition ran a highly negative campaign centred on culture wars, symbolic issues like the voice referendum, and woke school curricula. Political analysts noted that the party was defined by its opponents as a Trump style movement, also mirroring recent conservative losses in other democracies like Canada, where similar associations led to defeat.
Instead of presenting serious economic policies, they are leaders who have made claims about improving inflation and productivity without offering credible plans. Their campaign ignored core voter concerns such as healthcare, education, and infrastructure. The strategy was shaped by overconfidence. In contrast, Prime Minister Albanese’s positive and issue-focused campaign resonated with Australians. He called for respect even in victory and emphasised national unity. The outcome was one of Labour’s strongest mandates in, driven by listening to voters rather than pushing polarising narratives. The 2025 election demonstrated a substantial and surprising change in Australian voting patterns, with the Coalition haemorrhaging support across urban, younger, and non-WASP electorates. Although Labour’s track record on housing was heavily attacked, the Coalition was unable to make significant inroads in the renter vote, particularly in inner-city electorates such as Sydney and Grayndle, where Labour and the Greens comfortably ruled. The traditional belief that people move right as they get older is crumbling in the face of economic insecurity and housing unaffordability. Upper Middle Class “Heartland” Seats – formerly safe conservative seats Greens grew less conservative with 4 swinging left. The Liberals won back only a handful of such seats, and of those, some are still close.
In its May 3, 2025, election, Singapore also seemed to face a Trumpian backlash. Voters overwhelmingly supported the People’s Action Party (PAP), which is currently in power. Prime Minister c, who was leading a campaign as party leader for the first time, benefited from this. In recent elections, the PAP, which has governed Singapore for nearly all of its six decades of independence, saw its popular vote share drop and lost seats to a resurgent opposition, but this time it reversed those trends. In the election, the PAP gained five per cent more votes in the popular vote. The opposition Workers Party, which attacked the PAP on issues like the cost of living, slow growth, and housing shortages—issues that seemed to appeal to working-class and younger voters—seemed poised to win a larger share of voters and seats than in the previous election, according to many analysts before the vote. However, the Workers Party lost the popular vote and took home the same number of parliamentary seats—ten—as in the previous election.
The PAP may recover as the ruling party reaps the rewards of attracting districts that support it and of using the legal system to silence opponents—the leader of the Workers Party was convicted this year of a very minor infraction. However, for other significant reasons, the PAP turned the tide. As in Australia, the electorate shifted toward the ruling party because they believed the incumbent was best equipped to manage the chaos and uncertainty brought on by Trump’s policies. Given its size and vulnerability to global forces, Singapore feels especially vulnerable in this regard. Ian Chong, an associate professor of political science at the National University of Singapore, told the BBC following the election that we are also infamously risk-averse voters. After decades of opposition, the PAP has now, to some extent, acknowledged the necessity of a more extensive social welfare system. For example, daycare support and childcare were established by the ruling party. It also highlighted how it has expedited the construction of affordable housing and that it understands housing complaints. These expanding social welfare programs most likely weakened the Workers Party’s case for an unemployment benefit and for strengthening the public safety net. Since it did not organise as well as it used to, the opposition also suffered. Due to their failure to fully support the Workers Party, the opposition experienced internal strife and may have lost seats.
The 2025 elections in Canada, Australia and Singapore together make plain a rejection of the form of polarising, right-wing populism often now associated with Donald Trump. In Canada, Mark Carney’s possible resurrection promoted his fledgling candidacy by not only challenging Trump’s rhetoric but also by touting himself as a defender of Canadian sovereignty and of Canadian democratic institutions. Likewise, in Australia, the “Trump effect” failed as conservatives here tried getting down and dirty with culture wars, wedging and starting fights based on social issues, leaving younger, urban voters, especially Gen Z, put off by the lack of progressive values, inclusivity, and climate action. These were part of a wider story internationally, of voters turning against imported MAGA-style politics from abroad and towards candidates offering stability, constructive engagement, and a preference for social cohesion over confrontation and nationalism. In Singapore, the ruling People’s Action Party, a haven in turbulent waters, was favoured by the Trump effect. However, Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong needs to act quickly to resolve these conflicting U.S.-China issues. Like its neighbour, Malaysia, Singapore has seen a severe deterioration in the United States’ image, particularly during the Trump administration, and many Singaporeans actually like China. Similar to Singapore, China has grown in popularity there; even Anwar Ibrahim, the Prime Minister of Malaysia and a longtime defender of democracy who was once close to the United States, has changed his stance in favour of China. The White House seeks to assemble a group of nations with which it can negotiate separately while also isolating China. Since China already has far too much economic sway in Asia, Singapore and practically every other Asian nation will not adopt this strategy.
Thus, conservative parties worldwide are facing significant election challenges as a result of Trump’s global toxicity. Additionally, after years of throwing incumbents out in Europe and other nations, it seems to have started a trend where voters are now favouring them. This could be a result of the incumbent’s perceived greater expertise in handling the US and the volatility of the world economy. Whether or not those trends continue is still up in the air. With their distinct domestic problems, the upcoming elections in South Korea, Japan, and Poland will present new challenges that may show whether conservative parties overseas can turn around.
References:
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- Leake, Phil (2025). How Canada voted – in charts. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4jd39g8y1o
- India Today World Desk. (2025). Mark Carney wins big, slams Trump: Canada will never be America’s 51st state. India Today. https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/new-pm-mark-carney-message-to-trump-canada-will-never-be-america-51st-state-2691335-2025-03-10
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- TOI World Desk. (2025). Singapore elections 2025: Key issues among Trump’s tariffs impact and what to expect?. Times of India. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/rest-of-world/singapore-elections-2025-key-issues-among-trumps-tariffs-impact-and-what-to-expect/articleshow/120843373.cms
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Lakshmi Karlekar is a PhD Research Fellow at the Department of International Relations, Political Science and History, CHRIST (Deemed to be) University, Bengaluru. H.M. Greeshma is a BA (Hons) student in History and Political Science at the same department. Views expressed are the authors’ own.
Pranav S 
Dhruv Ashok 
Megna Devkar