Poilievre promising to promote a tariff-free auto sector during first U.S. visit as Conservative leader

Pierre Poilievre is headed to the U.S. for his first visit as Conservative leader, pushing for a free trade deal in the auto sector.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is promising to release a new auto pact that he says will remove the GST on all Canadian-made automobiles and eliminate tariffs for the sale of Canadian vehicles to the United States.

Poilievre released a few details of his new pact in Windsor ahead of a trip to Motor City, the first stop on a tour of three U.S. states.

“We have carefully studied what the American auto industry is looking to achieve, and we have calibrated a plan that will allow us to repatriate and massively increase our auto production on this side of the border, while at the same time making it attractive to the United States on the other side of the border,” he said.

Poilievre intends to release the pact on Sunday morning after returning to Windsor from stops in Michigan, New York and Texas.

In Michigan, Poilievre will be meeting with executives from General Motors and Ford, as well as legislators in Michigan and Ohio. He said there were “scheduling issues” when it came to trying to arrange a meeting with executives from Stellantis.

In Texas, he will visit an energy facility in Houston, and meet with state officials, and leaders in the energy, agriculture and business sectors.

He will wrap up his first trip to the United States in New York City where he’s scheduled to speak about his vision for Canada-U.S. relations at an event hosted by the Foreign Policy Association.

Although Conservative MPs including Jamil Javani have recently made trips to Washington, D.C., Poilievre will not be visiting the capital.

“Canada can’t control every decision made in Washington and I’ll leave the negotiating up to our government, but we can leverage the goodwill and shared interests with the American people,” he said in a video posted ahead of his departure.

CTV News Political Analyst Eric Ham questions that decision and says it could be a sign Washington insiders aren’t interested in meeting with the Conservative leader.

“I think it makes clear that he knows that not only is it not welcome, but I don’t think his voice even remotely resonates with the Trump White House and even with many rank and file Republicans in the House or Senate as well,” Ham said.

Ham, who lives in the United States and covers Washington, says Poilievre made a mistake by not visiting D.C. and making inroads with the U.S. administration when he was leading in the polls prior to the 2025 election.

“I think that was the time for him to begin to make those inroads, particularly with Republicans and with the Trump administration,” Ham said. “However, that did not happen. And now, I think here in the United States, I think he’s been discarded.”

Why is he travelling to the United States now?

This quick trip south of the border is Poilievre’s second ever international trip as Conservative leader. Last week, he was in the U.K and Germany where the party said he was working to reinforce and strengthen existing trade, commerce and diplomatic relationships.

Former Conservative MP James Moore says Poilievre is travelling to show solidarity with the federal government as it pushes for changes to Trump’s protectionist trade policies during the CUSMA review.

“I think Pierre Poilievre being down there and advocating that message to audiences that he might have access to, that the prime minister might not, I think is a good thing for the country,” Moore said.

Moore, who was a cabinet minister under former prime minister Stephen Harper, believes the trip is in Canada’s advantage but also provides a boost to Poilievre personally.

“I think it serves Canada’s interest to see political leaders of different political backgrounds singing from the same song sheet in terms of Canada’s interest and the North American interest of being co aligned with economic opportunities for both Canada and the United States,” he said. “It certainly helps Pierre Poilievre personally to be seen to be prime ministerial in the United States, advocating on behalf of Canada and free trade.”

According to Abacus Data, recent polls suggest about 4 in 10 Canadians put U.S. President Donald Trump and his administration in their top three issues. Almost everything, founder and CEO David Colleto says, is now being looked at through the lens of the Canada-US relationship.

Canadians, Coletto says, are thinking about the implications of the trade conflict with the United States now more than ever, and Poilievre is likely trying to be relevant in that conversation.

“Since just before and after the election, he’s been trying to change the subject, largely trying to get Canadians to focus on other issues that are maybe more domestic in nature,” Coletto said when asked why Poilievre is going to the U.S. now. “I think this is an attempt to insert himself into the story in a way he hasn’t for the past.”

Coletto also says that Carney is consistently polling ahead of Poilievre when it comes to who voters believe would be best to handle the U.S. relationship. This trip, he suggests, may be a chance to start countering that narrative.

“For the Leader of the Opposition, I think, he’s got to find a way to offer up an alternative on the thing that most people are thinking about,” he said. “That means, you know, travelling a little bit and trying to counter some of the strengths that Mark Carney have, which is, most people see him as this world, worldly statesman that is engaging with parts of the world, including the United States.”