Voters will see another federal byelection soon as Ontario Conservative MP Larry Brock is set to leave his position to join the Crown attorney’s office in Brantford, Ontario. This will mark the eighth byelection scheduled between late August and mid-April.
Brock, who began his term in 2021 representing the Brantford–Brant South riding in southwestern Ontario, is one of three Conservative MPs to resign this summer. Saskatchewan MP Cathay Wagantall and Quebec’s Richard Martel have also announced their departures, with Martel being appointed to the Senate.
Byelections will be held in Martel’s riding of Chicoutimi–Le Fjord, North Vancouver–Capilano, and Beaches–East York. The latter two will replace former Liberal cabinet ministers Jonathan Wilkinson and Nate Erskine-Smith, who resigned to take up other positions.
Bloc Québécois MP Simon-Pierre Savard-Tremblay resigned earlier this summer to contest in the Quebec election, leaving his seat in Saint-Hyacinthe–Bagot–Acton vacant. This is the only federal seat currently unoccupied without a scheduled byelection.
The prime minister must call a byelection within a specific timeframe after a seat is vacated, with the formal campaigning period lasting between 36 and 50 days. However, the process cannot begin until the departing MP officially leaves office.
Former NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice is running for Québec solidaire in the provincial election without relinquishing his Montreal seat yet. Meanwhile, former Liberal cabinet minister Steven Guilbeault is set to resign as an MP on August 28, with Brock following suit on September 18.
The House of Commons is expected to resume its sessions on September 21 after the summer recess.