CBC | Top Stories News
· collected 2026-08-31 · by Benjamin Lopez Steven
Voters are heading to the polls today in three federal byelections in British Columbia, Quebec, and Ontario. The byelections will determine two seats that could give the Liberals control of the legislative agenda. According to CBC News' special coverage plans, the most competitive race is expected to be in Chicoutimi–Le Fjord, where polls suggest a toss-up between the Liberal and Bloc Québécois candidates. The byelections come as the Liberals hold 170 seats in the House of Commons, while opposition parties have a combined total of 166 seats.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-31,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Voting began on Monday in three federal by-elections, including a potentially close race in Chicoutimi-Le Fjord, Quebec. The seat was held by Conservative MP Richard Martel since 2018, but he stepped down to join the Senate after being appointed. Martel had won a tight three-way race in the riding in 2025 by about 1,500 votes, beating Liberal and Bloc Québécois candidates. If the Conservatives lose this seat, it could add to concerns about the leadership of Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre. The other two ridings being contested are Beaches-East York, Ontario, which is replacing a former cabinet minister, and North Vancouver-Capilano, British Columbia.
Written for “Canadian Federal Byelections” on 2026-08-31,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 3320 · logged 2026-08-31
Voters head to the polls for 3 federal byelections in Ontario, Quebec and B.C.
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Voters → head → Ontario
CBC News will hold special coverage beginning at 9:30 p.m. ET
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News → hold → p.m.
Voters are heading to the polls on Monday to decide three federal byelections in the British Columbia riding of North Vancouver–Capilano, the Ontario riding of Beaches–East York and the Quebec riding of Chicoutimi–Le Fjord.
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Voters → head → Chicoutimi
Due to various vacancies, the Liberals have 170 seats in the House of Commons and the opposition parties have a combined total of 166 seats.
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parties → have → seats
The Liberals will need to secure two wins to guarantee control of the legislative agenda once all the seats are eventually filled.
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seats → need → agenda
The most competitive race is expected to be in Chicoutimi–Le Fjord.
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race → expect → Chicoutimi
Former Conservative MP Richard Martel held the riding since 2018 but stepped down last month after being appointed to the Senate.
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Martel → hold → Senate
The Liberals and Bloc Québécois are gunning for the seat, which polls suggest is a toss-up between the two parties.
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polls → gun → parties
Daniel Gobeil is the candidate for the Liberals, and Caroline Dubé is running for the Bloc.
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Dubé → run → Bloc
Other candidates in the riding include Régis Gaudreault for the Conservatives, Raphaël Émond for the New Democratic Party and Nathe Perrone for the Green Party.
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candidates → include → Party
In the Ontario riding of Beaches–East York, candidates are looking to replace former Liberal MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, who won the riding by about 26,000 votes in the 2025 federal election.
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who → look → election
Elections Canada reminds Chicoutimi-Le Fjord voters: Monday's byelection is federal
Carney appoints one of his top advisers and a Conservative MP to Senate
And in the B.C. riding of North Vancouver–Capilano, candidates are looking to replace former Liberal MP Jonathan Wilkinson, who won the riding by about 16,500 votes in the 2025 federal election.
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who → remind → election
Wilkinson, who was a cabinet minister under both Prime Minister Mark Carney and former prime minister Justin Trudeau, vacated the seat in July after he was appointed by Carney to be Canada's ambassador to the European Union.
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he → vacate → Union
CBC News will have special coverage of the byelections with chief political correspondent Rosemary Barton and Power & Politics host David Cochrane.
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News → have → Barton
It will begin at 9:30 p.m. ET and can be found anywhere you stream CBC News.
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you → begin → News
Should the Liberals lose all three byelections, they'll have additional opportunities in the future to nab the two wins they need for a majority.
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they → lose → majority
The prime minister has yet to call three byelections in the Quebec ridings of Saint-Hyacinthe–Bagot–Acton and Rosemont–La Petite–Patrie and the Ontario riding of Scarborough North.
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minister → have → North
Plus, Conservative MP Cathay Wagantall is expected to officially resign on Monday from her seat in the Saskatchewan riding of Yorkton–Melville, and Conservative MP Larry Brock says he'll step down from his seat in the Ontario riding of Brantford–Brant South–Six Nations next month.
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he → expect → month
