A Canadian task force reported that malicious news articles originating from Chinese social media attempted to discredit former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, a candidate to succeed Justin Trudeau as Liberal Party leader.
The Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections Task Force (SITE) detected a "coordinated and malicious" campaign on WeChat, traced to an anonymous but widely followed account. Experts at China Digital Times have linked this account to China.
Freeland, responding on X, stated she would not be intimidated by foreign interference, emphasizing the importance of defending democratic freedoms. The Chinese embassy in Canada denied involvement, dismissing the accusations as baseless.
SITE revealed that over 30 WeChat accounts participated in the effort against Freeland, amassing more than 140,000 interactions between January 29 and February 3. The campaign reached an estimated 2–3 million WeChat users worldwide.
This latest incident adds to Ottawa’s ongoing allegations against Beijing. A recent official probe found that China attempted to interfere in past Canadian elections, though without altering results. The investigation concluded that China remains the most active foreign entity targeting Canadian governance at all levels.
Freeland entered the leadership race after Trudeau announced his resignation last month. A longtime ally of Trudeau, she resigned in December, criticizing his leadership. The Liberal Party will announce its new leader on March 9.