The leader of Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, on Wednesday triggered a snap election, saying he needs a strong four-year mandate to fight the tariffs threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford pitched himself Wednesday as the best steward of the economy in the face of looming tariffs, but the other party leaders say his record from the last seven years suggests otherwise.

The premier of Ontario, Canada's most populous province, said on Friday he would call an early election, citing the need for a strong mandate to fight against tariffs threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Ontario premier Doug Ford has triggered an early election in the province, saying he needs a strong mandate to take on the tariff threat.

Trump pledged in his inaugural address that tariffs would be coming in a speech in which he promised a golden era for America. He later said Canada and Mexico could be hit with the tariffs as soon as Feb. 1, though he signed an executive order requesting a report coordinated by the Secretary of Commerce by April. 1.

Due to Trump’s tariffs, Canada cannot afford to have the focus of one of its key provincial leaders diverted into trying to win an unnecessary provincial election.

Roughly $900 billion in annual trade between Canada and the United States — and with it, traditionally chummy bilateral ties — is on the brink of upheaval, with President Donald Trump threatening to impose sweeping tariffs on Canada as early as this weekend.