Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Sunday that by-elections will be held in four ridings on June 19, including Notre-Dame-de-Grâce – Westmount, where Marc Garneau’s potential successor should be known on Monday.
In addition to this electoral district west of Montreal, a vote will also be held in Oxford, Ontario, and in Portage-Lisgar as well as Winnipeg – Centre-Sud, Manitoba. In Notre-Dame-de-Grâce – Westmount, the by-election will aim to replace Marc Garneau, who announced at the beginning of March that he was leaving politics.
The former Minister of Foreign Affairs, who was also Minister of Transport for five years in the Trudeau government before taking the helm of Canadian diplomacy in January 2021, had officially left his post as an MP after giving a farewell speech. filled with emotions in the House of Commons.
PHOTO PATRICK DOYLE, REUTERS ARCHIVES
In Notre-Dame-de-Grâce – Westmount, the by-election will aim to replace Marc Garneau, who announced at the beginning of March that he was leaving politics.
In a recent interview with The Press, Mr. Garneau had clearly indicated that he would not have sought the votes in the last election if the Prime Minister had informed him that he would no longer be part of Cabinet. He had already agreed with his family that the 2019 campaign would be the last and that he would return to his land at the end of this mandate.
A vote must also be held Monday until 7 p.m. by the members of the Liberal Party of Canada (PLC), to determine who will be the Liberal candidate succeeding Mr. Garneau in this Liberal stronghold of the metropolis. Former party president Anna Gainey is the favorite, according to several observers. The current Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mélanie Joly, offered her support earlier this week, speaking of a “devoted Liberal”.
Bernier tries his luck again
Across the country, however, there are several other struggles to watch. In Portage-Lisgar, where the former interim leader of the Conservatives Candice Bergen left politics in February, the leader of the People’s Party of Canada, Maxime Bernier, will notably try to get elected.
The main interested party officially launched his campaign on Friday at a press conference, promising “to always fight for all Canadians”. “I am your man. I will not change and I will not compromise, ”he said in a video posted on his social networks.
In Winnipeg – Centre-South, Ben Carr, son of former minister Jim Carr who passed away in December, will try to succeed his father by being elected as MP for the riding. With the exception of the 2011-2015 term, this riding has been Liberal since the late 1980s.
One thing is certain: the stakes will be high. These by-elections will represent a test for the minority government of Justin Trudeau, shaken by several controversies in recent months, including foreign interference. Among the Conservatives, this will be an opportunity for leader Pierre Poilievre to make crucial gains on the eve of an upcoming federal election.