Two byelections a test for Trudeau, rivals

It was too soon to tell late Monday night the outcome of two federal byelections in Quebec and Manitoba, both of which have been viewed as tests for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his opposition rivals.

- RAISA PATEL

With the vote count still underway in Montreal's LaSalle-ÉmardVerdun and Winnipeg's ElmwoodTranscona, it wasn't immediately clear which parties had successfully defended their strongholds or fallen to their challengers. As of 10:25 p.m. the NDP were in the lead in Elmwood-Transcona with 49.7 per cent of the vote, with only 25 polls reporting out of 191.

The outcome of Montreal's contest could land as late as early Tuesday morning, due to a protest movement calling attention to electoral reform that led to 91 names appearing on the riding's ballot.

The Liberals have spent much of the last two months fighting to retain their hold on the south Montreal riding, which has been handily won by the party since it first appeared on the electoral map in 2015.

But amid ever-simmering frustrations with Justin Trudeau, the New Democrats and Bloc Québécois spent weeks mounting strong challenges to the incumbent Liberals, with political observers predicting a close, three-way race.

Over in Winnipeg, the NDP bastion of Elmwood-Transcona saw a battle between the New Democrats and the Conservatives in a race that saw both parties court workingclass voters.

Trudeau called both byelections in July after former justice minister David Lametti, who had represented LaSalle-Émard-Verdun since its creation in 2015, left federal politics after he was dropped from cabinet in 2023. Former NDP MP Daniel Blaikie triggered the race in Elmwood-Transcona after he left the federal NDP in March to advise Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew.

For weeks, the pair of byelections which tend to net lower voter turnouts than federal elections have had every party on guard.