OTTAWA, Ontario (LifeSiteNews) — Alberta and British Columbia are set to gain more federal ridings, which could increase Conservatives’ chances of a federal victory in the next election.
According to a memo published October 10 by Blacklock’s Reporter, the next federal election will see fewer Members of Parliament (MPs) in Toronto and northern Ontario, and more in Okanagan, British Columbia, and suburban Alberta.
“One of our election readiness activities this year relates to electoral boundaries redistribution,” Chief Electoral Officer Stéphane Perrault testified at the House affairs committee.
The changes will come into effect under the Electoral Boundaries Readjustment Act on April 22, 2024, and elections after that date will “take place under the new map.”
The redistribution aims to rebalance the seats proportionately to population growth within the provinces. It will mean a record 343 seats in the House of Commons. Currently, ridings are divided into 122 in Ontario, 78 in Québec, 43 in British Columbia, 37 in Alberta, 14 in Saskatchewan, 14 in Manitoba, 11 in Nova Scotia, 10 in New Brunswick, 7 in Newfoundland and Labrador, 4 in Prince Edward Island and 1 each in the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
Under the new distribution, Toronto will lose the Scarborough-Agincourt riding held by Liberal MP Jean Yip, going from 25 to 24 federal ridings. Last election, all 25 Toronto ridings voted for the Liberals, at 51 percent support, making it the party’s largest popular vote in any major Canadian city.
“It is necessary to move a district to other areas of the Greater Toronto Area that, while equally diverse, are growing much faster than the City of Toronto,” said the Final Report of The Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission For The Province Of Ontario.
“The population of the City of Toronto only grew by 6.9 percent from 2011 to 2021 compared to 11.7 percent for the remainder of the province,” it wrote, arguing that keeping 25 seats in Toronto would “unfairly impact other parts of Ontario.”
Additionally, Northern Ontario is set to lose one of its nine ridings. In 2021, most ridings in Northern Ontario voted Liberal, with the exception of Kenora (Conservative MP Eric Melillo) and Timmins-James Bay (New Democrat MP Charlie Angus).
“We are in a very fragile time for democracy,” MP Angus testified May 8 at the House affairs committee. “We must do our best to reassure citizens that their voice counts and that they are being heard.”
Ontario’s ridings are set to be given to western provinces. British Columbia, which typically votes Liberal or New Democrat, will gain one new seat, Vernon-Lake Country in Okanagan.
On the other hand, Alberta, a historically Conservative province, is set to gain three ridings in Calgary McKnight, Airdrie-Chestermere and Spruce Grove-Leduc.
The Alberta ridings are not the only factor pointing to a Conservative victory next fall. Recently, Canadians have become increasingly fed up of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s leadership.
A September poll revealed that Trudeau’s disproval rates have reached a record high of 57 percent. The number should not come as a surprise as the polling also showed that 72 percent of Canadians are concerned with rising costs of living amid Trudeau’s ever-increasing carbon tax and energy regulations.
According to a September 5 report by Statistics Canada, food prices are rising faster than the headline inflation rate – the overall inflation rate in the country – as staple food items are increasing at a rate of 10 to 18 percent year-over-year when compared to the overall inflation rate of 4 percent.
Earlier this year, the Bank of Canada admitted that Trudeau’s federal “climate change” programs, which have been deemed “extreme” by some provincial leaders, are indeed helping to fuel inflation.
Furthermore, as a result of the Trudeau government’s Online News Act, Canadians can no longer access news on Facebook or Instagram as Meta refuses to pay the fees mandated by the act.
On the other hand, Conservative Party leader Poilievre has openly condemned the Online News Act, comparing it with George Orwell’s dystopian novel “1984.”
Furthermore, Poilievre has repeatedly promised Canadians that he will axe the carbon tax and restore the economy if elected prime minister.
Poilievre, however, is not without his own host of issues in the eyes of social conservatives.
While Trudeau came out to condemn the September 20 Million Person March against LGBT indoctrination in schools, Poilievre initially failed to support the immensely popular pro-family effort, and even went as far as having his office tell his caucus to refrain from making any statements about the movement.
Poilievre did eventually break his silence on the matter, slamming Trudeau for his condemnation of concerned parents and encouraging the federal government to leave LGBT discussions to families and not the education system.