Mark Carney’s Liberal Party Leads Canadian Election Night

(Montréal, Canada) The Liberal Party, led by Mark Carney, appears to be forming the next Canadian government, but the suspense continues Monday night regarding whether it will be a majority or minority government.

As of late Monday, both the Liberals and Conservatives have elected around a hundred candidates each, but the Liberals are ahead in more ridings. However, there is no indication that the Liberals will reach the crucial threshold of 172 elected candidates needed for a majority government. The Conservatives have gained votes compared to pre-election polls and have won Liberal ridings in Long Range Mountains, Newfoundland, and Vaughan–Woodbridge, Ontario.

The Liberals, on the other hand, have won back ridings from the Conservatives in South Shore–St. Margarets, Nova Scotia, and Toronto–St. Paul’s, Ontario. They also reclaimed ridings from the Bloc Québécois in LaSalle–Émard–Verdun and Rivière-des-Mille-Îles. Most incumbent ministers, including Dominic LeBlanc, François-Philippe Champagne, Steven Guilbeault, and Mélanie Joly, have been re-elected.

Meanwhile, the New Democratic Party (NDP) is facing a challenging evening, with only one elected member, Alexandre Boulerice, in Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie, and just 5.5% of the national vote, lower than the Bloc Québécois’ 7.9%. So far, approximately 60% of the votes have been counted across the country.

Yves-François Blanchet was the first party leader confirmed to be re-elected, followed shortly by the announcement of Mark Carney’s election. Green Party leader Elizabeth May has been re-elected in Saanich–Gulf Islands, British Columbia, but co-leader Jonathan Pedneault lost his race in Outremont, Montreal. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre is currently trailing in the Carleton riding in Ottawa, with few counting results reported.

At the time of the House of Commons’ dissolution, the Liberal Party of Canada had 152 seats, the Conservative Party had 120, the Bloc Québécois 33, the NDP 24, and the Green Party 2, along with three independent MPs and four vacant seats. About 28.5 million people are registered to vote and will elect 343 MPs, an increase of five from the last general election in 2021 due to electoral boundary changes. The voter turnout in 2021 was 62.6%, with 17.2 million votes cast from 27.5 million registered voters.

Election Canada experienced intermittent service issues on its website Monday evening, which was criticized by many voters on social media. One user lamented, “I can’t locate my polling station… I’ve been trying to access the website for 30 minutes.” Elections Canada acknowledged the difficulties but did not provide an explanation for the service interruption. Voters were advised to check their voter information cards or contact their local office for polling station details.