Mark Carney calls byelections for Ontario, Quebec ridings in April

Prime Minister Mark Carney has called three byelections in Ontario and Quebec to be held April 13, which could lead to Liberals securing majority government.

The votes could result in the governing Liberal party securing a majority in the House of Commons.

The Liberals currently have 169 MPs in the House of Commons, three seats short of the 172 needed to secure a majority government.

The Conservatives currently hold 141 seats, the Bloc Québécois has 22, there are seven members of the NDP and the Green Party has one seat.

Byelections will be held in the Toronto-area ridings of Scarborough Southwest, which was left empty when MP Bill Blair was appointed Canada’s High Commissioner to the U.K., and Chrystia Freeland’s former riding of University-Rosedale.

A byelection in the Montreal area riding of Terrebonne is needed after the Supreme Court of Canada nullified a one-vote win.

Elections Canada said in a news release that voters in the three ridings can vote in advance from April 3 to 6 at their assigned polling stations, or at their Elections Canada office any time before April 7.

Ridings residents can also cast their vote by mail, with the application to do so due by April 7.

The byelections follow after three Conservative MPs crossed the floor to join the Liberal party.

The byelections will come two weeks after the federal NDP will select a new leader during their national convention in Winnipeg in late March.

It also comes days after the Liberals hold their national convention in Montreal on April 9 to 11.

With files from The Canadian Press.

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