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While the election loss is the culmination of a stunning turn of events for the Conservatives 鈥� who just three months ago were poised to win a majority 鈥� Poilievre told his supporters Monday that the results offer cause for optimism.

The party gained on the 119 seats it won in the 2021 election and saw its best performance in the popular vote since Brian Mulroney led the Conservatives to a 43 per cent vote share in 1988.

“We are cognizant of the fact that we didn’t quite get over the finish line yet. We know that change is needed, but change is hard to come by,” Poilievre told the crowd.

“It takes time. It takes work, and that’s why we have to learn the lessons of tonight so that we can have an even better result the next time the Canadians decide the future.”

The Conservatives outperformed in Atlantic Canada, made gains in B.C. as the NDP vote collapsed and swung several seats from the Liberals around Ontario, including in Kitchener, Brampton, York and Windsor.

But the Conservatives couldn’t capitalize on the Bloc Qu茅b茅cois’ loss of ground to the Liberals in Quebec.

“Canadians have opted for a razor-thin minority government, a virtual tie in the vote count, so I would like to congratulate Prime Minister Carney on leading this minority government,” Poilievre said.

“Yes, we will do our job to hold the government to account, but first, we congratulate people from all political backgrounds on participating in the democratic process.”

In her riding in Thornhill, Ont., Melissa Lantsman 鈥� the party’s co-deputy leader 鈥� congratulated Prime Minister Mark Carney on the victory.

“Look, this isn’t the result that we were hoping for. And unfortunately it seems Canadians have chosen a very different version of the future than the one I would have liked to see,” Lantsman told a crowd of supporters.

“This is a time of great uncertainty and turmoil. But our new prime minister deserves the congratulations, our prayers and most importantly 鈥� in a democracy 鈥� a very, very strong opposition.”

Conservative supporter Joanne Gurman, who attended the event at the Rogers Centre, said she’s still hopeful but she can’t understand why people voted Liberal. She said she doesn’t trust Carney.

“I don’t understand why people still want to live in the same nine years, the same over and over again, like nothing is going to change,” she said.

Gurman, who is from Montreal, said she has never been involved in politics before now.

Her daughter Raquel Gurman said she hopes to see a better, more prosperous Canada.

“Regardless of what happens, we do have to stick together as Canadians and we have to incorporate our Conservative values with the Liberal party,” she said.

Poilievre has been praised for broadening his party’s base of support since he took over the leadership in 2022, particularly among young people and newcomers to Canada.

Many of the party’s supporters in Ottawa on election night pointed to the enthusiastic support for Poilievre’s campaign events as evidence that the polls were missing some voters.

The Conservatives focused their election campaign messages on affordability and the cost of living, along with a suite of tough-on-crime policies.

Poilievre largely avoided talking about U.S. President Donald Trump and his trade war, which were the dominant campaign issues for the Liberals.

鈥� With files from Sharif Hassan in Thornhill, Ont.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 28, 2025.