Justin Trudeau to be Canada's next prime minister after Liberal landslide

In a stunning victory, Liberal leader Justin Trudeau will follow in his father's footsteps and serve as prime minister of Canada.

As of 11:45 p.m. ET Monday, the Liberals were elected or leading in 188 seats in the lower house of Parliament, 18 more than needed to form a majority government, The Globe and Mail reports. The Conservatives had 105 seats, the NDP 34, the Bloc Quebecois 10, and the Green party one. The BBC's Anthony Zurcher says that the Liberal victory was "only the second time in Canada's history that a party has gone from third place in Parliament to first."

The Liberals made large gains in Quebec, after only winning seven of 75 ridings (districts) in the last federal election, and had a strong showing in Ontario, notably ousting Chris Alexander, minister of citizenship and immigration, from his seat in the Toronto suburb Ajax; Alexander had been widely criticized for the Conservative government's handling of the Syrian refugee crisis, The Guardian says. The Conservatives did best in Alberta, and party leader and current prime minister Stephen Harper was elected in his riding. Conservative President John Walsh announced late Monday that Harper will step down as leader, and he will reach out to the parliamentary caucus to appoint an interim leader.

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The sweep marks the end of nine years of Conservative rule, and Trudeau will become the second-youngest prime minister in Canadian history. His father, Pierre Trudeau, served as prime minister from 1968 to 1979 and again from 1980 to 1984.