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