Prime Minister Mark Carney made a quick visit to Kitchener on Friday to participate in an event. Carney, who was in southern Ontario that day, stopped by the Schwaben Club in Breslau, just outside Kitchener, to join in the Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest festivities. He used a wooden mallet to tap a keg at the fest hall and then enjoyed a mug of beer while conversing with local politicians.
The stop in Kitchener was brief, squeezed in between a morning commitment in the Niagara region and an evening celebration in Brampton for Diwali. Kitchener-Waterloo Oktoberfest is recognized as the largest Oktoberfest celebration outside of Munich, Germany.
Notably, K-W Oktoberfest has attracted other prime ministers in the past. Justin Trudeau participated in the opening ceremonies in 2016 and tapped the keg. He also attended in 2023, although he did not participate in keg tapping that year.
In a previous year, in 2015, Stephen Harper attended the K-W Oktoberfest parade, but did not march in it due to an ongoing federal election. This year, Canadian musician Steven Page tapped the keg, while former Canadian Football League player and current Toronto Argonauts general manager, Michael Pinball Clemons, served as the parade marshal.