Top 10 Canadian News Stories of 2019

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Bianca Andreescu, photo credit by si.robi - Andreescu WM17 (12), CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61326686
Bianca Andreescu, photo credit by si.robi - Andreescu WM17 (12), CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61326686

2019 was quite a politically-heated year, due to the Canadian federal election in October 2019 and the continued pressure to impeach the President of the U.S. Although political scandals dominated the news cycle, other news stories captured Canadians’ attention. We have culled through the newsmaking stories – the ones that appeared in your Twitter and Facebook feeds – and have named the top 10 Canadian news stories of 2019, beginning with number 10:

Bianca Andreescu, photo credit by si.robi - Andreescu WM17 (12), CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61326686
Bianca Andreescu, photo credit by si.robi – Andreescu WM17 (12), CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61326686



10. Andrew Scheer resigns as leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. There was mounting pressure from within the party for Scheer to resign due to his unimpressive showing in the election, but his resignation was expedited by the fact that he had been using Conservative Party funds to pay for his children’s private school education.

9. Teen climate activist Greta Thunberg arrives in Montreal for the Global March for Climate Action. Thunberg met with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during her visit and told him that he was not doing enough to protect the environment from climate change.

8. China announces that two Canadians detained on suspicion of harming national security acted together to steal state secrets. Chinese authorities announced that former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig violated Chinese laws by stealing Chinese state secrets and intelligence, aided by Canadian businessman Michael Spavor. The two were arrested Dec. 10 in what was widely viewed as a retaliation move after Chinese executive Meng Wanzhou, CFO of Huawei, was arrested in Vancouver on Dec. 1 at the request of U.S. authorities.

7. Bruce McArthur, the serial killer who preyed on men in Toronto’s gay village, pleads guilty to eight counts of first-degree murder. McArthur, a landscaper, placed the remains of his victims in planters outside a home in north Toronto.

6. Photos of Justin Trudeau wearing blackface are leaked to the media. Trudeau apologizes and says he “should have known better”. In one incident, Trudeau dressed as Aladdin in blackface at a private school where he taught.

5. Sportsnet fires Don Cherry for making racist comments on Hockey Night in Canada’s Coach’s Corner. The comments implied that immigrants to Canada did not buy poppies for Remembrance Day because they did not appreciate the sacrifices made by Canadian war veterans.

4. Justin Trudeau and his cabinet approve the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion nine months after the Federal Court of Appeal rescinded its original approval because the government had not consulted with the Indigenous community.

3. Trudeau demotes Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould to Minister of Veterans Affairs of Canada for not intervening in the prosecution of SNC Lavalin for fraud and corruption charges regarding the payment of CA$48 million in bribes in Libya to officials in the government of Muammar Gaddafi. Trudeau is heavily criticized for attempting to interfere with the administration of justice. Wilson-Raybould resigns from Cabinet shortly after.

2. Bianca Andreescu rocks the tennis world by beating Serena Williams and becoming the U.S. Open 2019 Champion. Andreescu is the first Canadian to win a Grand Slam Singles Title.

1. Toronto Raptors led by forward Kawhi Leonard mesmerizes Canada by overcoming a 0-2 deficit in the lead-up to the finals and winning the NBA Championship. The win is the number one news story of the top 10 Canadian news stories of 2019 because it was the first NBA Championship win by a Canadian team and the first Toronto team of the four major North American professional sports leagues to win a championship in 25 years. The City of Toronto celebrated the historic win by throwing the Raptors a parade that was televised across the country.


Those are our top 10 Canadian news stories of 2019. Please let us know in the comment section if you agree or if you feel there are other news stories that should make the top 10.

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27 COMMENTS

  1. IT’s always nice to look back at the prior year news and events. Glad you shared some from Canada to enjoy reading. I’m going to have to peek into a few of these news stories, I had no idea some of these things happened.

  2. Such an interesting post. We do not hear too much about Canada down here in the US so i was curious to hear what happened in your country

  3. Looking back over the year in headlines is always a great way to reminisce. I tend to forget a lot of things (almost as soon as they happen), so going back always helps with the old memory! haha

  4. As a Canadian, this brings me back to all the moments I saw these headlines throughout the year. The Raptors and Andreescu winning were definitely ones worth celebrating!

  5. I honestly didn’t know a whole lot about any of these. I don’t follow up much on news like I probably should. A lot of interesting things here though.

  6. When my mom is living with us (1/3 of the year) she watches a ton of political news, but since I’m in the US, I didn’t know about many of these stories. I think Greta is right, the leaders of our countries need to do more to stop global warming.

  7. It is always interesting to look back on the news stories of the year and see what really was the biggest hitter on the headlines. Interesting to read Canada’s as someone from outside.

  8. These News stories are really interesting to read. I’m not familiar with some but it’s good to read them before the year ends.

  9. So much definitely has happened this year, especially when it comes to politics. Congratulations to the Raptors though! I don’t watch a lot of NBA but it’s really awesome news.

  10. Wow! I can’t believe it about Don Cherry! I remember watching Hockey games and Hockey Night In Canada when I was younger.

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