It’s election day across Canada in what many consider to be the most important and consequential federal election held in recent memory.
Newfoundland and Labrador holds seven of the 343 seats in the House of Commons—with six currently held by the Liberals and one by the Conservatives.
The Liberal minority government had 152 seats at dissolution, compared to 120 Opposition Conservatives. The remaining seats were divided among the Bloc Quebecois at 33, the NDP with 24, and the Green Party with 2. Three members sat independently and four seats were vacant.
In this province, just two incumbents are in the running—Liberal Joanne Thompson in St. John’s East, and Conservative Clifford Small in central Newfoundland, with the other five seats guaranteed to be filled by fresh faces new to Ottawa.
Some riding boundaries and names have changed since the last federal election, so voters are encouraged to check their voter registration cards which should have arrived in the mail, to familiarize themselves with any possible changes.
There was a record number of ballots cast in the advance poll, something some attribute to the Easter holiday and how people are feeling about on-again, off-again U.S. tariffs and continued threats to Canadian sovereignty by President Donald Trump.
The polls open at 8:30 local time in Newfoundland and in Labrador, and close at 8:30 local time tonight to follow the new staggered voting hours introduced in the last election.
VOCM’s live coverage of the election results begins tonight at 8:30 Newfoundland time, until the local seats are decided.
