What Mark Carney’s budget reveals about the ridings Liberals want to keep and win - Toronto Star

Ridings of two floor-crossers to the Liberals got project funding in Thursday's budget, but so did Pierre Poilievre's.

Prime Minister Mark Carney shakes hands with his new Liberal MP, Marilyn Gladu, in Ottawa, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. 

OTTAWA — Federal budgets are much more than a fiscal blueprint.

Yes, they can define a prime minister’s economic legacy, telegraph their demographic targets, and record their policy priorities in the annals of history.

But they can also reveal the thinking behind the ground game that political parties are forever waging: a community that scores a coveted budget-day shout-out or a new funding commitment could signal what ridings a governing party is seeking to hold and gain.

Here’s what the 2026 budget suggests about the people and places Prime Minister Mark Carney may have in his sights.

Two of the floor-crossers who helped the Carney Liberals cement their majority status in Parliament scored wins in Thursday’s budget.

From affordability measures to more cash for spies, here’s your cheat sheet to Carney government’s second federal budget.