Montreal byelection expected to test the Liberal party
Byelections rarely draw the kind of attention that has now put a spotlight on a vibrant and densely populated Montreal riding. The Monday vote in Lasalle-Ville Emard-Verdun, in the city’s southwest, is shaping up as a three-way race and a test of the strength of the Liberal party’s base.
Along Wellington Street, a pedestrian road lined with busy restaurants and shops, many voters walk past election posters and chat about the choice they face in an area that has long been a Liberal fortress.
“I don’t know yet, to tell you the truth,” says Philip Sarazan. “I am going to vote for sure, not for Poilievre (the Conservatives). But I am not sure I am going to vote for the Liberals. I did not like the way David was handled, he was tossed aside.”
Former Justice Minister David Lametti was first elected in the riding in 2015 and was dropped from cabinet in July 2023. He resigned earlier this year, triggering the election in Lasalle-Ville Emard-Verdun.
That was only the latest chapter in the storied history of the riding. The neighbourhood, where two-thirds of electors are renters, was represented by former Prime Minister Paul Martin for two decades and was considered a safe Liberal riding for many elections. In 2011, though, it fell to the NDP when the orange wave crashed through Quebec.
For many voters like Mary Folco, voting Liberal has become a habit. “I have always voted Liberal,” she says. “It is just the party I feel comfortable with.”
But this time, if the limited number of polls is to be believed, the byelection is shaping up as a three-way race, with the Liberals, NDP and the Bloc Quebecois in contention. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in the Montreal area today and spoke of what he says is at stake.
“This election is going to be an important moment of choice for Canadians, and indeed, Montrealers,” he said.
Trudeau mainly focused his attacks on the NDP, which is fielding a high-profile candidate in the riding, Craig Sauve, a longtime city councillor.
“I know there are a lot of people disappointed with the NDP playing simple politics, walking away from progressive values and from the fight against climate change,” said Trudeau.
Electors say the cost of living, housing and health care are key issues.
Analysts say this could be a crucial moment for Liberals, as a loss could signal they are losing even their core base, especially in the wake of the party’s byelection loss to the Conservatives in the stronghold of Toronto-St-Paul’s in June.
“It is really the Liberals’ rising to lose,” says Daniel Beland, director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada. “The NDP candidate, Craig Sauve is well known, but the Bloc Quebecois is also campaigning aggressively. It is an exciting race which it normally should not be from a Liberal standpoint.”
Still, Beland says he is not convinced a loss would push Prime Minister Justin Trudeau out of the top job. “It would complicate things for sure, but there are a lot of factors at play.”
Analysts are looking to the byelection in Manitoba that will also be held Monday as an indication of the strength of the NDP and its leader Jagmeet Singh. The NDP has won ten of the last 11 elections in Winnipeg’s Elmwood-Transcona riding with the Conservatives taking the other.
In the Montreal area, those wanting to try to read into the outcome of the byelection may have to pull an all-nighter, as a close race could mean late results.
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca ǿմý
Bloc MPs will vote confidence in Liberal government next week: Blanchet
The Conservatives' first shot at toppling the Liberal government is likely doomed to fail, after Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-François Blanchet told reporters his MPs will vote confidence in the government.
Court documents filed in the case of a Pakistani man arrested in Quebec for an alleged plot to kill Jews in New York City reveal the RCMP didn't have enough evidence to hold him in Canada.
Here's why you should get all your vaccines as soon as possible
With all these shots, some Canadians may have questions about the benefit of each vaccine, whether they should get every shot and how often to get them, and if it's safe to get them all at once or if they should space them out.
A 14-year-old student who allegedly set her classmate on fire is facing a new charge.
Video of a brazen daylight auto theft which shows a suspect running over a victim in a stolen luxury SUV has been released by police west of Toronto.
DEVELOPING Exploding electronic devices kill 20, wound 450 in second day of explosions in Lebanon
Lebanon's health ministry said Wednesday that at least 20 people were killed and 450 others wounded by exploding electronic devices in multiple regions of the country. The explosions came a day after an apparent Israeli attack targeting pagers used by Hezbollah killed at least 12 and wounded nearly 3,000. Here are the latest updates.
Royal Canadian Mint's new toonie commemorates 100th anniversary of Royal Canadian Air Force
The Royal Canadian Mint unveiled in Winnipeg a new toonie, which began circulating Wednesday, highlighting the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Air Force.
What to know about the deadly electronic explosions targeting Hezbollah
Just one day after pagers used by hundreds of members of the militant group Hezbollah exploded, more electronic devices detonated in Lebanon Wednesday in what appeared to be a second wave of sophisticated, deadly attacks that targeted an extraordinary number of people. Here's what we know so far.
Second judge denies bail to Sean 'Diddy' Combs
Lawyers for Sean "Diddy Combs asked a judge Wednesday to let him await his sex trafficking trial at his luxury home on an island near Miami Beach, rather than a grim federal jail in Brooklyn.
Local Spotlight
An ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey named Goliath is missing from its longtime home at a veterinary hospital south of Calgary.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.
It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.
A Good Samaritan in New Brunswick has replaced a man's stolen bottle cart so he can continue to collect cans and bottles in his Moncton neighbourhood.
David Krumholtz, known for roles like Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause and physicist Isidor Rabi in Oppenheimer, has spent the latter part of his summer filming horror flick Altar in Winnipeg. He says Winnipeg is the most movie-savvy town he's ever been in.
Edmontonians can count themselves lucky to ever see one tiger salamander, let alone the thousands one local woman says recently descended on her childhood home.
A daytrip to the backcountry turned into a frightening experience for a Vancouver couple this weekend.
If you take a look to the right of Hilda Duddridge’s 100th birthday cake, you’ll see a sculpture of a smiling girl extending her arms forward.
Two sisters have finally been reunited with a plane their father built 90 years ago, that is also considered an important part of Canadian aviation history.