Here are a few news items from the by-elections that aren't being covered elsewhere, but may be of interest to readers:

• If the Bloc Québécois' Nancy Gagnon is elected in Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, QC next Monday, she will be part of the second married couple to sit in the House of Commons right now, and the third one ever. Gagnon's spouse is Bloc House Leader Pierre Paquette, M.P. for Joliette on the north shore. They would join NDP Leader Jack Layton and his partner Olivia Chow who represent neighbouring Toronto ridings, and follow in the footsteps of Conservative M.P.s Gurmant and Nina Grewal both from Surrey, BC (only Ms. Grewal is still sitting in the Commons). Notwithstanding these precedents, however, the other week Conservative candidate Bernard Généreux questioned how much time, in the face of Gagnon's situation, she might be able to devote to her own constituents.
  
  The two have been sparring over numerous issues, including the post office in La Pocatière, government support for forestry workers, EI reform, the impact of "Buy American" on contracts for Bombardier, and the involvement of former Bloc M.P. Paul Crête in obtaining federal government funding for the area. Généreux has accused Gagnon of "demagoguery"; she's asked him to apologize for denying Crête's role in obtaining some federal funds (she later produced an ad in which he had earlier congratulated Crête for his role, but I wish I could find that clipping again now ;-)); and he's said her accusation about Bombardier was "scandalous". I guess this is what we call a "hotly contested" race.
  
  
• Meantime, with the hotly contested Montréal municipal elections out of the way, the race in Hochelaga has also heated way up, with a pretty frontal assault launched by the NDP Tuesday morning on Bloc Québécois candidate Daniel Paillé's progressive credentials and the extent of his ties to the riding he's running in. The party unveiled a website highlighting aspects of Paillé's past, both in government and the private sector, and tied it to a street poster campaign, featuring a blue cheque with a Conservative logo made out to Paillé, in reference to his work during the last Parliament for former Conservative Minister Michel Fortier on the awarding of opinion research contracts in the federal government. Duceppe and Paillé had scheduled a news conference for Tuesday morning to discuss the Port of Montréal. I haven't seen any coverage of their reaction to the NDP's attacks, as most stories focused instead on Duceppe's refusal to dine with the Royals.
  
  
• Elections Canada has released Advance Voting numbers for the four ridings. I've crunched the numbers below, but early voting interest appears highest in Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, NS and lowest in Hochelaga, QC (probably not surprising, given the much greater interest in municipal politics there in the last few weeks).

Riding	2009 By Electors	2009 By Adv.	2008 GE Electors	2008 GE Adv.
CCMV	67,789	3,397 (5.0% of electorate)	68,831	3,726 (5.4%)
MIKR	77,886	3,092 (4.0%)	78,377	3,931 (5.0%)
'Chlag	78,260	1,829 (2.3%)	79,542	4,184 (5.3%)
NWC	82,226	3,075 (3.7%)	80,755	4,576 (5.7%)

Labels: Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, Hochelaga, Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, New Westminster – Coquitlam, Nov 9 2009 By-elections

I'm on cottage-time here, where everything moves a little more slowly in the nomination news department. However, as things have really piled up and a few significant nominations have occurred over the past few days, it's time for me to smarten up and get with it; starting with the most recent nominations in the prospective by-election seats:

• Hochelaga, QC - The NDP did, as expected, renominate their 2008 candidate Jean-Claude Rocheleau here on Monday. Rocheleau is the president of the east island refinery workers' local of the CEP, and embodies the NDP's continuing efforts to encroach on the Bloc Québecois' support in the Québec labour movement. The riding is currently represented by long-time Bloc M.P. Réal Ménard, who has announced that he will be resigning effective Wednesday September 16 (the first caucus meeting of the fall sitting of Parliament), in order to run for Montréal city council in the municipal elections taking place this November 1. A political scientist, Ménard has won the riding handily since 1993 when he defeated one-term Conservative M.P. Alan Koury (who himself replaced one-term Conservative M.P. Edouard Désrosiers in 1988). Prior to 1984 the riding was represented by then-Liberal M.P. (and current Liberal Senator) Serge Joyal.
• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - Ken Beck Lee won the contested Liberal nomination over Gerry Lenoski here last night, according to the LeftCoast.ca blog. Curiously (well to me, anyway), voting was conducted without the benefit of candidate speeches (although as my partner has pointed out to me before, politicos like political speeches a LOT more than pretty much the rest of the voting public, so what do I know). Lee is a civil engineer and member of the Korean Cultural Heritage Society of Canada, and is a first-time candidate for the Liberal Party. The BC federal Liberal association had earlier set up a byelectionbc.ca website, with biographies of both candidates. More background here from the Burnaby Politics blog, where a commenter claims that Lee had signed up 1000 members, although a reader tells me that there were around 380 ballots cast last night. The riding was vacated by three-term NDP M.P. Dawn Black (one of them from 1988-1993, not yet in this database), who stepped down to run provincially in the spring, after defeating Korean-Canadian Conservative candidate (and now-Senator) Yonah Martin in the last general election. Already nominated are the NDP's Fin Donnelly, Rebecca Helps for the Green Party, and most recently Diana Dilworth for the Conservatives.
• Windsor – Tecumseh, ON - Thanks to a reader for writing to confirm that the Conservative riding association here renominated Ms. Ghanam by acclamation last June 5, after conducting their candidate search process in May. Ms. Ghanam is a management consultant and lecturer in the business school at the University of Windsor. She captured second place in 2008 against the NDP's four-term M.P. Joe Comartin, moving ahead of the Liberals in this riding once held by the late Liberal M.P. Shaughnessy Cohen.
• Markham – Unionville, ON - Long-time Markham city councillor Gordon Landon was acclaimed last Thursday as the Conservative candidate in this riding north of Toronto, the Georgina Advocate reports. The first-time federal candidate will be facing four-term Liberal M.P. John McCallum, who has won the riding handily since the 2000 election, when he replaced the then-lone Ontario Progressive Conservative M.P. Jim Jones.
  
• Halton, ON - Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff has appointed businesswoman Deborah Gillis as his candidate here, according to a weekend Liberal news release, and interestingly has done so over the heads of two green-lighted candidates (Air Canada pilot Rohit Dhamija and George Brown College VOIP professor Sheref El Sabawy) and one other prospective candidate (former provincial Liberal candidate Gary Zemlak), as noted on the Liberal Scarf blog citing a recent story from the Oakville Beaver. As blogger Will Norman observes: "Gillis was mentioned nowhere in the article, which was written on July 31st .... The article contains a quote by the riding President that is very interesting in light of Gillis being appointed: 'Riding association president Steve Savage said there is no hurry to settle on a candidate as there is no election on the horizon'. Evidently Ignatieff must see at least the shape of an election on the horizon, unless he wouldn't have appointed a candidate (which I believe is the first time Ignatieff has used the leader's power to appoint, but I might be mistaken.)". I haven't seen any other reports of Mr. Ignatieff appointing candidates either, and believe Mr. Norman is correct in that observation. Meanwhile, former Conservative-turned-Liberal Halton M.P. Garth Turner was not amongst Liberal candidates seeking to be green-lighted according to Ontario Federal Liberal executive director Judi Longfield, as quoted in the Oakville Beaver story, but blogger Norman believes that the Dufferin – Caledon, ON rumour we reported on earlier for Turner might still be viable.
  
• Newmarket – Aurora, ON - The same Liberal news release touted other women candidates including lawyer and King Township Mayor Margaret Black who it says will be acclaimed on August 12 in this riding north of Toronto. As pointed out by the Liberal Scarf, this means that nomination candidate and Newmarket councillor Chris Emanuel must have dropped out of the race quite recently, as all evidence pointed to his continuing to run as of when the release was issued. We earlier reported on his candidacy here, along with the withdrawal of 2008 Liberal candidate Tim Jones in favour of endorsing Ms. Black. A bit more here from the King Township Sentinel. The riding is currently held by first-time Conservative M.P. Lois Brown, who won it on the retirement from politics of Conservative-turned-Liberal M.P. Belinda Stronach.

The Monday Liberal news release announced four Ontario women candidates in total, including two already reported here some time ago (Christine Innes in Trinity – Spadina, ON and Kimberley Love in Bruce – Grey – Owen Sound, ON). The Toronto Star's Susan Delacourt is also reporting from cottage country on her blog that Green Party Elizabeth May continues to muse on her chances of running in the latter riding as well. By the way, I need to track down the correct spelling of Ms. Love's first name, as the Liberal Party spelled it "ey", while the Meaford Express story from three weeks ago just had it as "y". If anyone can clarify, please drop me a line.

Besides Newmarket – Aurora, ON as mentioned above, a number of other Ontario Liberal nomination meetings have recently been announced on that PTA's website, namely:

• Tue 11 Aug - Thunder Bay – Superior North, ON - 3 candidates contesting (Don McArthur, Yves Fricot, Joe Virdiramo)
  
• Wed 12 Aug - Ancaster – Dundas – Flamborough – Westdale, ON - former CHCH-TV anchor Dan McLean and ?former 2008 candidate Arlene MacFarlane-VanderBeek?
  
• Thu 13 Aug - Chatham-Kent – Essex, ON - a contest pitting the sons of 2 former Liberal MPs: Matt Daudlin and Steve Pickard
  
• Fri 14 Aug - Essex, ON - no information (if you can help, jot me a note)
  

OK, now on to other nomination news:

• Gaspésie – Îles-de-la-Madeleine, QC - Another good catch by the Liberal Scarf blog, who came across a clipping from Le Soleil about Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff's recent trip to the Gaspésie with returning candidate Nancy Charest of neighbouring Haute-Gaspésie – La Mitis – Matane – Matapédia, QC, which also reported Quebec lieutenant Denis Coderre's preference for the return of 2008 Liberal candidate Denis Gauvreau in this riding currently held by two-term Bloc Québécois M.P. Raynald Blais. Gauvreau moved his party back into second-place last time, past former Progressive Conservative M.P. and Conservative candidate Darryl L. Gray.
  
• Richmond – Arthabaska, QC - From La Nouvelle / L'Union in Victoriaville, we learn that Louis Bérubé, the business development manager for the Caisse populaire in l'Érable, will be running for the Liberal nomination here, and has the support of 2008 candidate Gwyneth Helen Grant. Liberal Québec lieutenant Denis Coderre will be attending the nomination meeting next Monday, August 10. The riding is currently held by three-term Bloc Québécois M.P. André Bellavance.
• Ottawa Centre, ON - The NDP has scheduled its nomination meeting here for Monday, September 28. Two-term incumbent NDP M.P. Paul Dewar is expected to run once again. Meantime the Liberal nomination race appears to be down to Scott Bradley and Janet Yale, although no meeting date has been set there yet. The Greens already have 2008 candidate Jennifer Hunter back in place for the next election, and no names or plans have yet surfaced from the Conservatives.
  
• Northumberland – Quinte West, ON - A third candidate has decided to enter the contested Liberal nomination race in this eastern Ontario riding, reports NorthumberlandToday.com. The Mayor of Brighton, (Ms.) Chris Herrington, will be joining Kim Rudd and Andrew McFadyen (previously reported on here). No meeting date has been set to my knowledge. The riding is currently held by two-term Conservative M.P. Rick Norlock, and the Green Party has already nominated its candidate Stan Grizzle.
  
• Welland, ON - Thanks for a reader for pointing out this clipping from the Welland Tribune running down the parties' election preparations in this Niagara-region riding, and reporting the Conservative nomination meeting as set for Thursday, September 17. 2008 candidate Alfred Kiers (who previously ran under the Christian Heritage Party banner in neighbouring Erie – Lincoln, ON in 1997) is apparently set to run for the Conservative nomination once again, but may yet be joined by several others in a contest. Area Liberals have already renominated former long-time M.P. John Maloney. The riding is currently represented by first-time NDP M.P. Malcolm Allen who defeated Maloney in the 2nd closest 3-way race of last fall's general election.
• Esquimalt – Juan de Fuca, BC - According to CFAX-1070AM, area Greens have now opened up nominations in this riding, part of whose provincial equivalent was recently contested by their provincial leader Jane Sterk in the last B.C. election. The riding is currently held by long-time M.P. Keith Martin for the Liberals. Conservatives recently renominated their 2008 candidate Troy deSouza as well. The NDP has yet to pick a candidate in this riding, once held for a term by former NDP premier Dave Barrett, but usually runs strongly as well here, in a riding that's seen more than its share of close 3-way races.
  

In other Green Party nomination news, a reader writes to say that the party had screened 114 candidates by July 31, most in ridings that already have electoral district associations (EDAs) in place.

OK, I think that covers everything for now. If you have nomination news I missed (or sent me any nomination news I forgot to cover, for which I apologize in advance), please do send a note along so I can include it in the next update. Then follow along on Twitter for the latest counts and updates.

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Conservatives, Greens, Hochelaga, Liberals, NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam

You'll recall that, further to a motion adopted by the House on the Liberals' last Opposition Day motion in June, the Commons is scheduled to return on Monday, September 14, 2009.

In order to have a by-election held the previous Tuesday, September 8 (the day after Labour Day), it would have had to be called over the weekend.

So, it now seems clear that the three vacant seats won't be filled before Parliament returns, leading us to conclude that the Prime Minister may either be waiting to call them in such a way that the by-election campaigns are on-going during the next confidence vote, or that he is waiting for Hochelaga to become vacant on Wednesday September 16 and call all four at once.

Only New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC has all 4 major party candidates in place, the Liberals selecting theirs yesterday. Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, NS has its Conservative candidate, a Liberal contest under way, and presumably an NDP announcement designed to coincide with their convention down that way soon, plus the possibly that Green Party Leader Elizabeth May could yet enter the race. No-one is yet nominated in Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, QC. And only the NDP has its candidate in place in Hochelaga, QC (see forthcoming nomination news update).

Labels: Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, Hochelaga, Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, New Westminster – Coquitlam, Vacant Seats

I've just been watching an interesting series of web video tutorials on the current state of Javascript, the DOM and Ajax for a project I'm working on, in which the lecturer says "web time used to be fast, but now it's slow". No kidding. I stop for a day to do something else and then fall drastically behind on the nomination news. Which makes the news from here slow, but the expectations for speed high. Sorry about that folks; here's all the latest now:

• Joliette, QC - Thanks to the Liberal Scarf blog we learn that 2008 candidate Suzie St-Onge was acclaimed at the Liberal nomination meeting Tuesday night. The riding is currently held by Bloc Québécois House Leader Pierre Paquette, who has won it handily 4 times since the 2000 election. Ms. St-Onge placed third in 2008, but did improve on the vote share of her predecessor in 2006.
• Ottawa Centre, ON - The word is now that Isabel Metcalfe will not be running for the Liberal nomination here, setting up a two-way race between Scott Bradley and Janet Yale for an as-yet unscheduled nomination contest. The riding is currently represented by two-term NDP M.P. Paul Dewar. Sorry that it seems to get disproportionate attention in this blog, but being as it's where I live I'm privy to a lot more rumours to report. And naturally, being the riding that contains Parliament Hill, the place is crawling with politicos and journalists who live and work here and generate an above-average volume of rumours, such as another one that surfaced from the Conservative election school conference yesterday that John Baird might not run again; which seems unlikely to me, but then maybe he's planning to run for Mayor ... a job that could be opening up here soon. (h/t again to the Liberal Scarf, who should nevertheless not be held responsible for the very last piece of completely idle speculation on my part)
  
• Windsor West, ON - Lisa K. Lumley was acclaimed by the Windsor West Conservative candidate search committee on or about July 7 is my information now, and I've entered her into the database accordingly. I'm still trying to confirm a date on Denise Ghanam in neighouring Windsor – Tecumseh, ON but someone is working on this for us. Also, I have emails out on the two north Toronto Conservative candidates Joe Oliver in Eglinton – Lawrence, ON and John Carmichael in Don Valley West, ON, looking to confirm whether they've actually been renominated and if so on what date and were they contested, so if you can help out on any of these, please do get in touch.
• York – Simcoe, ON - Liberal nominations are now open in this central Ontario riding, currently held by three-term Conservative M.P. Peter Van Loan, according to the King Township Sentinel. Already nominated are Van Loan and Vicki Gunn for the Christian Heritage Party.
  
• Algoma – Manitoulin – Kapuskasing, ON - A whopping 4 Liberal candidates are now in the running for the nomination up here, which we learn thanks to a commenter on an earlier blogpost here (the ubiquitous Liberal Scarf once again). Joe Chapman, a federal Crown Attorney and former Mayor of Northeastern Manitoulin and the Islands (NEMI), is joining the Wawa Chief Accounting Officer Chris Wray, François Cloutier, a provincial public servant in the Ministry of Attorney-General and small business owner, and Marc Dupuis who is a VP of the Nord-Aski Regional Economic Development Corporation and a Hearst city councillor. in the race to represent the party of former riding M.P. Lestor B. Pearson. The winner will take on first-time NDP M.P. Carol Hughes. No date appears to have been set for the meeting as yet.
• Edmonton East, AB - As expected, and indeed as reported here quite some time ago, New Democrats renominated their former provincial leader and 2008 candidate Ray Martin last night, with Leader Jack Layton in attendance. The riding is currently held by long-time Conservative M.P. Peter Goldring, who was one of the government caucus members publicly advocating for incumbents to have their nominations protected last March, but whose own potential retirement I keep seeing referred to but never sourced. He was first elected in 1997, the year Ray Martin also first ran federally. See my earlier blogpost for a complete run-down on the riding.
• Edmonton Centre, AB - Again as expected, and at the same meeting even, the NDP officially welcomed first-time candidate Lewis Cardinal who won the party's nomination here by acclamation. I've received three separate emails about this one in the last 24 hours, so it seems people want to ensure you know about it! Meanwhile, the Liberal party acclaimed its candidate on Monday night, lawyer and former aide to Anne McLellan Mary MacDonald. The riding is currently held by two-term Conservative M.P. Laurie Hawn, and I've given a rundown of its history here earlier.
• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - I think I'm breaking the news here that the Liberal nomination meeting has now been scheduled for Tuesday, August 4. Running are Gerry Lenoski (as first reported here back in June) and also apparently Ken Beck Lee an engineer from Surrey, who is also the president of the Korean Cultural Heritage Society of Canada. Apparently not running after all is Port Moody Mayor Joe Trasolini. The TriCity News had a report yesterday on the municipal by-election implications of the federal by-election race, but didn't have the date or names for the Liberal meeting yet. The NDP has already picked Coquitlam councillor Fin Donnelly in a contested nomination late last month, while the Conservatives chose Port Moody councillor Diana Dilworth in a contest this past weekend. The Green Party has acclaimed new candidate Rebecca Helps. I'm told that over half the riding is comprised of Coquitlam, 15% is in Port Moody, with the remainder in New Westminster.
• Esquimalt – Juan de Fuca, BC - It's official. An entry in the Elections Canada database now confirms that Troy deSouza was renominated by acclamation on June 19, 2009. This will be his third try as Conservative candidate in this riding currently held by long-time Liberal M.P. Keith Martin, and usually hotly contested by three or more parties. I gave the full rundown in my last blogpost here.

Lewis Cardinal joins the growing list of nominated aboriginal candidates (4 Conservative, 1 Liberal, 2 NDP) which I'll start to keep track of in a new list as soon as I get a second to compile it.

In another update to an earlier blogpost, we learn from Manon Cornellier's blog at l'Actualité magazine's website that the Bloc Québécois' pre-session caucus meeting will be taking place right after the Labour Day weekend in Québec city, an area where they hope to regain seats from the Conservative Party.

Finally, on a very sad note, the Pundits' Guide wants to mark the far-too-early passing of a gentleman of Parliament, long-time Liberal procedural strategist Jerry Yanover. Mr. Yanover's funeral was very well attended this morning, and he was eulogized by Commons Speaker Peter Milliken and former Liberal House Leader and Interim Leader Herb Gray. Yanover was admired by his comrades and competitors alike, for if you had him in your corner it was a tremendous benefit, and if he beat you it was through being smarter, and maybe trickier, but certainly not meaner. The extent to which he is being mourned as a gentle man of Parliament is a measure of just how scarce are the inheritors of that ethic today. It is a great shame that time does not appear to have allowed his many stories and long history of parliamentary battles to have been documented in a book of memoirs, and we are the poorer for it. May he rest in peace.

If you have nomination news, or can confirm any of the details I'm looking for above, please jot me a note here, and then follow the Pundits' Guide on Twitter for all the latest news.

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Aboriginal Candidates, Conservatives, Liberals, NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam

Hot off the Twitter-press comes word of the latest candidate to win a contested nomination:

• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - @mpjamesmoore tweeted that Port Moody city councillor Diana Dilworth won the contested nomination held this afternoon, and will be the Conservative Party's candidate in this vacant riding where a by-election must be called before Tuesday, October 13. Already nominated is the NDP's Fin Donnelly, a Coquitlam city councillor, while a former Liberal candidate in a neighbouring riding, Gerry Lenoski, has been actively organizing for their nomination and Port Moody Mayor Joe Trasolini has yet to rule himself out either that I can tell. No meeting date is available for the Liberals as yet. The Green Party appears to have acclaimed business analyst Rebecca Helps from Port Moody, I've just noticed, as she was apparently the only candidate to meet the June 30th deadline.

This latest news appears to rule out Elizabeth May from running in this seat in any upcoming set of by-elections, although she has previously said she would likely not announce her intentions until any by-elections were actually called.

UPDATE: You'll notice that James Moore included "Port Moody" in the riding name in his original tweet, although it's not officially there. I asked him about that, and he tweeted back that that about half of Port Moody (some 12,000 people) is in the riding of New Westminster – Coquitlam. Of course, as Mr. Moore represents the other half, which is in his riding of Port Moody – Westwood – Port Coquitlam, BC, he should know! There is currently a private member's bill (Bill C-292) sitting on the Order Paper to change the riding's name to New Westminster – Coquitlam – Port Moody in the name of the former M.P. Dawn Black, and Moore appeared to commit Ms. Dilworth to carrying this issue forward.

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Conservatives, Greens, New Westminster – Coquitlam

While we're waiting for the result of tonight's contested Conservative nomination in Winnipeg South Centre, NB, let's catch up on the rest of the news, from west to east this time:

• Nanaimo – Cowichan, BC - Two Liberals, one from Duncan and one from Ladysmith, are said to be interested in their party's nomination after the riding association AGM at the end of June, reports the Ladysmith Chronicle. No date has been set for a nomination meeting as yet. This Vancouver Island riding, once held by Tommy Douglas as federal NDP Leader in the early 1970s, is currently represented by three-term NDP M.P. Jean Crowder, who won it in 2004 after two-term Canadian Alliance M.P. Reed Elley stepped down to take care of some health concerns. Elley sat out the the next election, but returned as Conservative candidate in 2008, coming within 7.5% of Crowder, in spite of outspending her (91% of the spending limit to 81%). Liberals fell to 7.5% and 4th place behind the Green Party here in 2008, but are hoping to improve in the forthcoming election.
• York – Simcoe, ON - Christian Heritage Party candidate Vicki Gunn was nominated by her riding association's annual general meeting this past April 27, and will be running in her fourth election. The riding is currently represented by two-term Conservative M.P. Peter Van Loan. Thanks to a reader for taking the time to pass along this information.
  
• Lanark – Frontenac – Lennox and Addington, ON - Dave Remington is now officially nominated as the Liberal candidate in this riding between Ottawa and Kingston, after Tuesday night's meeting. Remington joins long-time Conservative M.P. Scott Reid who was automatically renominated as the incumbent last May.
  
• Stormont – Dundas – South Glengarry, ON - Cornwall city councillor and SDG Legal Clinic staff member Bernadette Clement is considering a run for the Liberal nomination in this eastern Ontario riding located along the St. Lawrence Seaway, reports the Cornwall Standard Freeholder. A nomination meeting is expected to take place in early September, and Clement says that she will make a final decision by the middle of this month. If she does and is successful, she will be facing three-term Conservative M.P. Guy Lauzon, who is having a busy summer with the Cornwall border crossing issue. Liberals last won the seat under party whip Bob Kilger in 2000, who lost to Lauzon in 2004.
• Pontiac, QC - As we earlier reported here, former Liberal M.P. Robert Bertrand does indeed seem interested in making a run for the Liberal nomination in his old riding, according to 96,1 Renfrew radio. Already running are 2008 candidate Cindy Duncan McMillan and former Liberal Party national director Greg Fergus. The riding is currently represented by two-term Conservative M.P. Lawrence Cannon.
  
• Outremont, QC - National Newswatch carried a clipping from the Montréal Suburban this morning, detailing two candidates said to be actively organizating for the Liberal nomination in the only NDP-held riding in Québec, and one other star candidate being wooed. We earlier reported that former La Presse columnist and Le Soleil editor Alain Dubuc was being courted by Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff to run here, and the Suburban is reporting this name as well. Organizing for the nomination in the meantime is 2008 candidate (and well-known Québec actor) Sébastian Dhavernas, and former Liberal M.P. Martin Cauchon may also be considering a run once again as well. Many Liberals consider winning this seat back to be "the number 1 target" in Québec, particularly as Dhavernas came within 2,300 votes of NDP M.P. Thomas Mulcair in spite of running a less than fully funded campaign (just 59% of the spending limit vs. 88% by Mulcair).
  
• Jeanne-Le Ber, QC - A blog commenter is reporting that the Liberal nomination in this riding may be settled by an appointment to former Bell executive Marc Bruneau. We reported Bruneau's interest in running here last month. The riding is currently held by two-term Bloc Québécois M.P. Thierry St-Cyr, but was also targetted by the NDP in 2008, and wound up meeting the criteria for both a close two-way and four-way race.
  
• Brome – Missisquoi, QC -It sounds a bit bold for a party that won just 9% of the vote in the last election, but NDP Leader Jack Layton told La Voix de l'Est and the Sherbrooke Record that his party would be targetting this riding in the next election, with their 2008 candidate Christelle Bogosta set to run again, and because of the party's strong riding association. Certainly area Liberals are taking serious aim at the riding after nominating former Liberal M.P. Denis Paradis the other week. The riding is currently represented by Bloc Québécois M.P. Christian Ouellet, who at age 75 is currently the oldest Member of the House of Commons, but intended last we read to be renominated this fall for another run. (h/t the Liberal Scarf blog, who appears to be following more than just Liberal nominations now)
• Compton – Stanstead, QC - The Liberal nomination meeting has been called next door for July 23rd 22nd in this Eastern Townships riding, and 2008 candidate William Hogg (as reported here earlier) seems set to give it another try. The riding is currently held by three-term Bloc Québécois M.P. France Bonsant, but Hogg was able to gain a second-place finish after the Conservatives dropped about 5 points in support from 2006, much of it apparently to the NDP. Hogg's 2008 campaign spent considerably less than previous Liberal outings in this riding, at 21% of the limit vs. 71-74% in 2004-06 and certainly less than the 50-55% typically spent by the Bloc in this riding. Thanks to a reader for sending in the link.
  
• Montmorency – Charlevoix – Haute-Côte-Nord, QC - Bloc Whip Michel Guimond, who is one of the 6 original Bloc Québécois M.P.s sent to Ottawa in 1993, is ready for his 7th federal run whenever the next election is held, he tells Le Soleil. Guimond is calling Bloc M.P.s back to work in mid-August, and says the party has another 30 nomination meetings planned for early September before the Commons resumes sitting (currently scheduled for Monday, September 14).

In other news, there is some further speculation about possible Liberal dream candidates at the Liberal Scarf blog.

Also, a reader writes to advise that the Green Party's internal candidate recruitment process is fairly well advanced, with 76 of 101 candidate applications being nominated, acclaimed or appointed thus far, and many other candidates identified who have yet to complete the required paperwork. Many provincial BC candidates are set to run federally, all but 5 holes are slotted in the prairies, 2/3rds of Ontario ridings have nominated or identified candidates, and Québec candidate interviews are scheduled to be conducted soon. Of course, without candidate names attached to specific ridings with nomination dates, I can't enter then into the database, and therefore they are not counted in the tables on the site's main page.

Also, New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC Conservative Party members will have two chances to meet their 4 prospective nomination candidates next week, one on Monday in New Westminster and the other on Wednesday in Coquitlam (full details available here). The contested nomination meeting will be taking place on Saturday, July 25. Thanks to a reader for sending along this information.

Well, rats, I was hoping news would have arrived by now as to the winner of the contested Conservative nomination in Winnipeg. Since it hasn't, I'll have to get back to you on that tomorrow.

Meantime, if you have nomination or prospective candidate information to share with Guide readers, drop me a line with whatever you've got. Then you can follow the Pundits' Guide on Twitter for all the latest.

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Bloc Québécois, Conservatives, Greens, Liberals, NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam

From downtown Montréal to the Gulf Islands, we got news. Starting from east to west, like usual:

• Mount Royal, QC - I've been hunting for a clipping to confirm it, but I guess it's not so newsworthy that five-term Liberal M.P. Irwin Cotler would be renominated by acclamation at his June 30 meeting, in this long-time Liberal riding in the centre of Montréal. I'm going out on a limb and saying he probably won it Tuesday night, and am entering him into the database.
• Brossard – La Prairie, QC - Former one-term Bloc Québécois M.P. Marcel Lussier will try to win back his seat, the Brossard Éclair is reporting, which he narrowly lost to first-time Liberal M.P. Alexandra Mendès in the last election. A nomination meeting is expected to be held in the fall. Mendès, the first Liberal incumbent to be renominated this past June 14, was elected in 2008 by just 69 votes, in a surprising upset that saw her low-spending campaign (38% of the limit) nevertheless prevail over both Lussier (who spent 62% of the limit), and first-time Conservative candidate Maurice Brossard, who outspent them both (at 70%) and cut into Lussier's vote just enough to turn the riding into a three-way race which saw Lussier fall behind Mendès.
  
• Northumberland – Quinte West, ON - With former Liberal M.P. and 2008 candidate Paul Macklin bowing out of the race, two new candidates have stepped forward, reports NorthumberlandToday.com. Middle school teacher Andrew McFadyen and past-president of the area Chamber of Commerce Kim Rudd will be facing off in a meeting likely to be scheduled for the fall. The riding is currently represented by two-term Conservative M.P. Rick Norlock, and has also nominated Stan Grizzle as its Green Party candidate. h/t The Liberal Scarf
• Winnipeg South Centre, MB - Conservatives are gearing up for a contested nomination meeting this coming Thursday between Hart Mallin and Raymond Hall, which would be made all the more interesting if this rumour made in a comment on the Manitoba "PolicyFrog" blog were true: the commenter had heard that lawyer and former provincial Liberal candidate Paul Hesse is apparently leader Michael Ignatieff's preferred candidate to replace Liberal M.P. Anita Neville when she announces her retirement later this summer. Now, last we heard, Neville had told the Free Press' Mia Rabson that she had met the criteria for an uncontested renomination and everything appeared to be full steam ahead for the four-term M.P. If you know otherwise, please pass it on (hint, hint).
  
• Palliser, SK - Lawyer Noah Evanchuk is hoping to translate the energy from his recent involvement in the Ryan Meili provincial NDP leadership campaign into a bid for a federal seat, reports the Accidental Deliberations blog, and was apparently discussing his bid with NDP Leader Jack Layton at a Regina barbecue yesterday, says the Louis Riel Trail blog. No nomination date has been set as yet, and challengers are still possible. The seat is currently held by first-time Conservative M.P. Ray Boughen, who told Discover Moose Jaw late last week that he intended to run again "if an election is called in the not too distant future". Boughen assumed the seat after the resignation of former M.P. Dave Batters, whose tragic suicide earlier this week shocked and momentarily united the political class in their grief and disbelief. Batters' funeral is today, and he is being warmly remembered in Moose Jaw and elsewhere. [UPDATE: Buckdog reports that other Meili campaign activists are set to announce federal bids in Regina – Qu'Appelle, SK and Regina – Lumsden – Lake Centre, SK soon as well].
• Edmonton Centre, AB - Lots of activity and speculation in the provincial capital this past week, following on Lewis Cardinal's announcement last week for the NDP, and the Town Hall Meeting and Canada Day visit of Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff. Blogger Ken Chapman has also heard that 2008 candidate Jim Wachowich is taking himself out of the running, but that a former provincial candidate Mary MacDonald is hitting the pavement in his place. And after speaking with Wachowich himself, Daveberta.ca is confirming this morning that indeed he is not running again, but plans to support whoever the Liberal candidate is. Daveberta, Alex Abboud and the conservative Alberta Aardvark blog all attended Ignatieff's town hall and have a full rundown. Given that Ignatieff apparently said "that he would pull the plug if there were not significant changes to EI saying that he will 'not settle for anything other than substantial reform'," the Edmonton Centre Liberal association is apparently set to move its planned September nomination meeting forward.
  
  Meantime, the Calgary Herald's Jason Fekete checked in with political leaders at the Stampede on their state of election readiness, and reports Liberal Senator Grant Mitchell as saying that "the Grits haven't yet nominated any candidates in Alberta's 28 ridings but expect to have all hopefuls secured by the end of August. 'Minority governments generally are unstable and you can see where this one is particularly unstable,' Mitchell said. 'We're absolutely focused on being ready for a fall election, and we feel very good about it'." NDP and Green Party officials expect to be running most of their 2008 federal Alberta candidates again, Fekete also learned.
• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - The Conservative nomination meeting date has now been set for Saturday, July 25, Tri-CityNews.com is reporting, and although Paul Forseth has withdrawn from the race, four candidates remain in the running, including Diana Dilworth and Lorraine Brett as reported here numerous times, and two new names for me: Mark Lea-McKeown, who is currently a member of the Burnaby – New Westminster Conservative riding executive, and Andy Wickey, the owner of an insurance and investment services firm in Coquitlam and former member of the Royal Ceylon Air Force. More from the Tenth to the Fraser blog here.
  
• Saanich – Gulf Islands, BC - Green Party Leader Elizabeth May might have told the Chronicle-Herald on Tuesday that she is still considering any of 5 ridings to run in, but insider speculation is centring on this west coast seat as the likely target for several reasons. They include a Facebook group which recently popped up and has been joined by 68 people including key members of May's inner circle, while the Facebook group encouraging her to run in Guelph has only 4 members. Other signals are said to include her lengthy interview with the local Island Tides newspaper (largish PDF file), her recent book signing on Saltspring Island, and her planned attendance at the upcoming Saanich – Gulf Islands Green Party district association AGM on July 9. Numerous Liberal bloggers are strongly encouraging her away from Guelph and to head out west (though not all), and NDPers are Babble'ing over two threads about her chances there and what kind of opposition she might face. One anonymous commenter on the Calgary Grit's post claims to have heard that five-term Conservative M.P. Gary Lunn might not run again, but I certainly haven't found any documentary evidence of that (although again I'm always happy to receive any news by email, hint, hint). May meanwhile has not confirmed any of the speculation but did tell a Calgary fundraiser earlier this week that she would be running in a rural riding, the WesternStandard.ca is reporting.
  

Upcoming nomination meetings this week include Liberals in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce – Lachine, QC tomorrow night where five-term M.P. Marlene Jennings is expected to be acclaimed, and again in Lanark – Frontenac – Lennox and Addington, ON on Tuesday, where the Napanee Guide reports that 2008 candidate David Remington is the only declared candidate; and Conservatives as mentioned above, at a contested meeting on Thursday in Winnipeg South Centre, MB, a riding they're apparently targetting in the forthcoming election.

Reader contributions to nomination news help spread the word across the country, so drop me a line and pass along what's cooking in your backyard. Then follow the Pundits' Guide on Twitter for all the latest.

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Bloc Québécois, Conservatives, Greens, Liberals, NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam

Via Twitter comes news of the contested nomination meeting going on this afternoon in British Columbia:

• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - Coquitlam city councillor Fin Donnelly has won the NDP nomination in this riding, and will now try and replace former M.P. Dawn Black in the next election or by-election, whichever comes first. Donnelly defeated fellow Coquitlam city councillor Barry Lynch and New Westminster city councillor Lorrie Williams on the first ballot, as we learned from another reader report. Next to nominate may be the Green Party, whose nominations close on Tuesday June 30. Conservative Party nominations have closed, and although we don't know all the candidates whose papers may have been accepted, we do know that former Conservative M.P. Paul Forseth was out of the country for the deadline, and that Port Moody city councillor Diana Dilworth and former municipal candidate Lorraine Brett have both announced their candidacies. Port Moody mayor Joe Trasolini had been approached to run for the Liberals and was at least report said to be considering it, while a former Liberal candidate in a neighbouring riding, Gerry Lenoski, is now actively organizing for the nomination himself.
• Thornhill, ON - In a story by Jennifer Ditchburn of the Canadian Press on Liberal and Conservative approaches to the Jewish community, former Liberal M.P. Susan Kadis says that she is "looking at running again". Thornhill, which in the 2001 census had the highest percentage of adherents to the Jewish faith in the country (religion data was not collected in 2006), was a key target of the Conservative pre-election campaign last time around, and Kadis ultimately lost the seat to first-time Conservative M.P. Peter Kent, who also by the way massively outspent her, 96% of the expense limit to 65%. Thanks to another reader for passing along this clipping.
  

Meanwhile in New Brunswick, the Christian Heritage Party is also getting ready for the next election, reports the Miramichi Leader. While the party has not run candidates in New Brunswick for some time, it is now hoping to run a candidate in every riding in that province during the next election. Already identified as a candidate is Jason Farris, who will be running in Tobique – Mactaquac against Conservative M.P. Mike Allen, and Farris says there are two additional candidates identified to date.

Send the latest nomination news to the Pundits' Guide, and we'll pass it along to others. You can follow all the latest details by following us on Twitter as well.

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam

When the Conservative nomination meeting in one of the vacant seats is held, there is at least one interested candidate who won't be able to run:

• New Westminster--Coquitlam, BC - Former M.P. Paul Forseth is out of the country on a planned trip, which has prevented him from meeting the deadline to file nomination papers for the Conservative nomination in this vacant seat and likely by-election riding, reports the New Westminster News Leader tonight. Meeting the deadline was Lorraine Brett, and presumably Diana Dilworth as well. Forseth had expressed concerns to the Hill Times last March that his party might try and prevent him from running, in favour of parachuting a "star" candidate into the riding. No date is mentioned for the Conservative nomination meeting, however the NDP meeting is set for this Sunday, June 28, while the Green Party has set a deadline of June 30 for candidates to apply. Meanwhile, the Georgia Straight online is reporting that Port Moody mayor Joe Trasolini has not completely ruled out running for the Liberals.

If you have nomination news to pass along, send me an email and I'll include it in the next update. Or you can follow the Pundits' Guide on Twitter for all the latest tidbits.

UPDATE: I rushed to post this, but later didn't like the way the headline sounded, and so I've changed it to read "Conservative Nomination DEADLINE in New West...". Didn't mean to offend anyone.

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Conservatives, New Westminster – Coquitlam

Another candidate has stepped forward to contest the Conservative nomination in one of the three vacant seats:

• New Westminster--Coquitlam, BC - Nominations opened June 11 for prospective Conservative candidates in this vacant seat in the Vancouver suburbs, and a second name is surfacing, reports the New Westminster News Leader. Former municipal candidate and area volunteer Lorraine Brett will join former Conservative M.P. Paul Forseth and Port Moody municipal councillor Diana Dilworth. The nomination meeting will be held scheduled for the week of July 23-28, the Leader reports. Meanwhile, the NDP's contested nomination meeting for the riding is being held this Sunday, June 28.

The Prime Minister could have called this by-election anytime after April 27, although to call all 3 vacant seats at once he would have had to wait until June 2. The earliest that the three seats could be called simultaneously was June 2 for a July 13 date, while the latest they could all be called is Tuesday, October 13 for a date November 23 or later.

My best guess is that they will be called on the August long weekend for the Tuesday after Labour Day (September 8), given that the House is now scheduled to return on Monday, September 14, following the vote on the Liberals' opposition day motion of last Friday. However, the PM could decide to defer the call until after Thanksgiving and wait to see what happens on the Liberals' autumn opposition day which is set for two days after the tabling of the blue ribbon panel's report on EI in the week of September 28.

The provincial by-election being contested by former Bloc Québécois M.P. Paul Crête, who vacated his Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, QC (MIKR) seat at the end of May is also being held today, and so we likely won't see many names surface for nominations there until later this week at the earliest.

Meanwhile, with the Nova Scotia provincial election out of the way, NDPers are Babble'ing about the favourable transposition of recent provincial results onto the federal boundary in Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, NS (CCMV) and speculating on when a candidate might be announced. One (as yet unnamed) candidate is said to be in the works, and the possible synergies with the party's Halifax Convention planned for August 14-16 are being considered. The Conservatives have already nominated Scott Armstrong, while 2008 candidate Tracy Parsons is hoping to run for the Liberals.

Labels: Conservatives, New Westminster – Coquitlam, Vacant Seats

I've accumulated a few items of nomination news from various sources in the last day or so:

• Chatham-Kent – Essex, ON - 2008 Liberal candidate teacher Matt Daudlin is hoping to carry his party's banner once again, and tells the Chatham Daily News that he has been officially approved by the party to run for the Liberal nomination in this south-western Ontario riding. Interested in joining him, but not yet approved, is Chatham city councillor Steve Pickard. No date has been set for the nomination meeting, however. The seat is currently held by two-term Conservative M.P. Dave Van Kesteren who was returned with nearly 48% of the vote. For an interesting perspective on the economic situation in this riding, take a look at Don Martin's profile from last fall's election.
• Kitchener Centre, ON - The Hill Times reported yesterday (subscription only) that former Liberal M.P. Karen Redman was in fact acclaimed as her party's candidate this past Friday, May 29. Redman's interest in running again was first reported here in April. She will be running against first-time Conservative M.P. Stephen Woodworth, in the 10th closest race of the last election.
• Hamilton Mountain, ON - The Conservatives renominated their 2008 candidate in this riding, insurance broker Terry Anderson, by acclamation at a meeting on May 14, according to the Elections Canada website. This makes Mr. Anderson the third Conservative non-incumbent to be renominated, all of them former 2008 candidates. Anderson was outspent by both two-term NDP M.P. Chris Charlton, and Liberal candidate Tyler Banham (64% of the limit vs. 84% and 87%), but still managed to move into second place ahead of Banham.
• Ottawa Centre, ON - The Green Party electoral district association in the riding that contains Parliament Hill renominated its 2008 candidate last night as well. Facilitator Jen Hunter will carry the banner for her party into the next election, continuing the strong performance shown by former Green candidate and leadership candidate David Chernushenko, in a riding that was the party's 19th best riding in Ontario in the last election, even though it fell below the 10% threshold for obtaining a rebate of candidate election expenses. Hunter will be facing two-term NDP M.P. Paul Dewar, and perhaps her former competitor Penny Collenette as well, who is also widely expected to contest the Liberal nomination in this riding once again. Thanks to a reader for passing this along.
  

The Liberal Party's deadline for incumbents to meet membership and monthly contribution requirements in return for automatic renomination was yesterday (June 1). The Hill Times is reporting that all incumbents are expected to meet the criteria, and Senator David Smith confirmed that 3/4s of them had met the two conditions as of last Thursday.

The nomination rules and process for Liberal ridings and prospective candidates have also been posted on the website of the Ontario section of the party.

Forthcoming Liberal nomination meetings include one we've already mentioned in Ontario, and five that were just announced by the co-chairs of the pre-election committee of the party's Québec wing:

• Sunday, June 14 - Kitchener – Waterloo, ON - where former Liberal M.P. Andrew Telegdi was the only candidate approved by the deadline, and is thus expected to be acclaimed. He will rejoin first-time Conservative M.P. Peter Braid and 2008 Green Party candidate Cathy MacLellan on the campaign trail in the #1 closest race of the last election.
  
• Sunday, June 14 - Brossard – La Prairie, QC - won in 2008 by first-time Liberal M.P. Alexandra Mendès
  
• Monday, June 15 - Rivière-des-Mille-Îles, QC - won in 2008 by first-time Bloc Québécois M.P. Luc DesNoyers
  
• Thursday, June 18 - Hull – Aylmer, QC - now held by five-term Liberal M.P. Marcel Proulx
• Saturday, June 20 - Beauce, QC - currently held by two-term Conservative M.P. Maxime Bernier
  
• Monday, June 22 - Brome – Missisquoi, QC - where as reported here earlier, former Liberal M.P. Denis Paradis will be trying to regain his party's nod and reclaim his former seat against two-term Bloc M.P. Christian Ouellet.

Meantime, on the potential by-election front:

• New Westminster – Coquitlam - Three city councillors are now confirmed to be in the race for the NDP nomination to replace former NDP M.P. Dawn Black, at a meeting scheduled for Sunday, June 29 June 28 [sorry for any confusion that typo may have caused]: Fin Donnelly and Barry Lynch from Coquitlam, and Lorrie Williams from New Westminster.
  

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Conservatives, Greens, Liberals, NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam

The first signs of nomination news in NDP circles has emerged, with a brief in yesterday's Edmonton Journal:

• Edmonton East, AB - Former Alberta NDP Leader and 2008 federal candidate Ray Martin has announced that he plans to seek his party's nomination once again. Martin obtained over 30% of the vote in the last campaign, moving ahead of the Liberal Party for the first time in many elections in this seat which was last held federally by the NDP from 1988 to 1993, and representing his party's 9th best non-incumbent riding performance in Western Canada during the last campaign and its second-best performance in Alberta after Linda Duncan who won in Edmonton – Strathcona. The riding is currently represented by long-time Conservative M.P. Peter Goldring, who outspent Martin 78% to 29% (Liberal candidate and student Stephanie Laskoski spent just 10% of the limit), but who had recently faced potential challenges to his own nomination prior to the results of the Conservative Party's referendum of his riding membership. No word yet on when the NDP nomination meeting will be held.

Meantime, in an election that could be held much sooner:

• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - Coquitlam city councillor and Rivershed Society Executive Director Fin Donnelly has now confirmed, as we surmised here last weekend, that he will indeed run for the NDP nomination in this forthcoming by-election riding, vacated by M.P. Dawn Black's decision to run in the recent provincial election. The nomination is still expected to be contested, the TriCity News reports, as is the Conservative nomination in all likelihood.

Do you have nomination news to share with Pundits' Guide readers? If so, drop me a line, and I'll be sure to pass it along.

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam

Late word of two more Conservative nomination candidates stepping forward out west:

• Edmonton – Strathcona, AB - A third hat is being thrown into the ring for the only unheld Conservative seat in Alberta, as University of Alberta student Matthew Sztym joined the nomination race just before last Friday's deadline. Sztym will face off against Ryan Hastman and Linda Slade for the right to take on first-time NDP M.P. Linda Duncan in the next election.
• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - Port Moody city councillor Diana Dilworth is the first candidate to announce her interest in the Conservative nomination for this vacant riding. No word on when a nomination meeting will be held. The seat opened up after the resignation of Dawn Black to run provincially in the recent election. Conservative candidate Yonah Martin came within 3% of Black in the last election, however Martin has since been appointed to the Senate.
  

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Conservatives, New Westminster – Coquitlam

Elections Canada announced this afternoon that it had received official notification today of Paul Crête's resignation yesterday and the resulting vacancy in his Québec riding of Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, QC.

The procedure involved was quite interesting actually, because apparently Commons Speaker Peter Milliken is out of town, and obviously Crête needed to resign quickly in order to run in the provincial Rivière-du-Loup by-election that was just called, so two Members of the House of Commons had to sign the warrant instead of Milliken in order for it to be sent to the Chief Electoral Officer. I wonder who they were.

Since the warrant was received today, we can now calculate the relevant dates for all three vacant ridings as follows. I plan to shorten this riding name to MIKR in certain situations, as I have already done with CCMV for Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, NS and NWC for New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC.

	MIKR	CCMV	NWC
Date of resignation:	Thu May 21, 2009	Thu Apr 30, 2009	Mon Apr 13, 2009
Date Speaker's warrant received by CEO:	Fri May 22, 2009	Mon May 4, 2009	Thu Apr 16, 2009
Earliest date the by-election could be called (11 days later):	Tue June 2, 2009	Fri May 15, 2009	Mon Apr 27, 2009
Earliest date the by-election could be held (first Monday at least 36 days after that):	Mon Jul 13, 2009	Mon Jun 22, 2009	Mon Jun 8, 2009
Latest date the by-election could be called (180 days later):	Wed Nov 18, 2009	Sat Oct 31, 2009	Tue Oct 13, 2009
Latest date the by-election could be held (first Monday at least 36 - [no maximum] days later, or the next non-Statuatory holiday):	on or after Tue Dec 29, 2009	on or after Mon Dec 7, 2009	on or after Mon Nov 23, 2009

So looking across the three ridings, the earliest they could all be called together is Tuesday June 2 for Monday July 13, and the latest they could all be called together is Tuesday October 13 for Monday November 23, 2009.

As a commenter to my previous post pointed out, the Nova Scotia provincial election and Québec provincial by-election now underway effectively rule out any by-election calls for June dates. Also, the Québec-wide municipal elections are being held this November 1, with a 45-day campaign period.

Thus I'm sticking with my earlier guess of a Monday August 3 call for Tuesday September 8, or a Monday August 10 call for Monday September 14 (the House reconvenes on Monday September 21).

Catching up on nomination news for the ridings, there are a couple of items to report:

• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - The local Green Party electoral district association (EDA) has called their annual general meeting for Monday June 15 to make plans for their candidate search and a summer nomination meeting.
• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC -Public Eye Online is also reporting a possible new entrant into the race, Coquitlam city councillor and Rivershed Society Executive Director Fin Donnelly. Curiously, though, his party affiliation is not mentioned. Donnelly did tell Public Eye Online that he is planning an announcement next week, and confirmed that he would not be running for the Liberals in the riding. His municipal election website from last November uses the colour green, but also features an endorsement from former provincial NDP cabinet minister and Coquitlam MLA John Cashore (Harvey's dad, for those following the Oliphant Commission). And a commenter on Babble believes that Donnelly will in fact be running for the NDP nomination. If so, he would be joining fellow Coquitlam city councillor Barry Lynch, and possibly New Westminster city councillor Lorrie Williams and health sector administrator Zoe Royer who ran next door federally in 2008 in the riding of Port Moody – Westwood – Port Coquitlam, BC, as previously reported here. No nomination meeting date has been set as yet.
  

If you know of nomination news in any of the by-election ridings, do get in touch and pass it along.

Labels: Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, New Westminster – Coquitlam, Vacant Seats

Hi folks, back from the Big Apple, and while I have a few items I'll be catching up on here in the next day or so, there are a few points to note quickly on the status of vacant seats.

First, Québec Premier Jean Charest called two provincial by-elections yesterday. Given that federal Bloc Québécois M.P. Paul Crête was nominated earlier this month as the Parti Québécois candidate for the Rivière-du-Loup by-election, his federal riding of Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, QC is set to become vacant very soon. Some early babble and at least one media pundit are already speculating on the possibility that Mario Dumont, having vacated his provincial seat, might be a contender for the federal Conservative nomination there. [UPDATE: I gather he was spotted at Prime Minister's Montreal fundraiser last night, for whatever that tells us.]

Second, unless you believe that Monday June 29 is a likely day for a federal by-election call (it sounds a bit late in the school year to me), we've now passed the last date on which the two outstanding federal by-elections could be called for Monday June 22 (i.e., they had to have been called by last Friday May 15 to occur on June 22) and therefore it is unlikely that those two seats will be filled before the fall, by which point Crête's vacant seat would be added to the list.

So, there will be one NDP, one Independent Conservative, and one Bloc seat up for grabs in the next round of by-elections whenever they're called. By-elections held on the Tuesday after Labour Day (September 8) would have to be called by the Civic Holiday in Ontario (Monday, August 3), or by-elections held on Monday September 14 (the last available date before the House is scheduled to return on Monday September 21) would have to be called by Monday August 10.

Stories to watch for in this round of by-elections include:

• whether former provincial ADQ leader Mario Dumont runs federally in Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, QC
• whether and where Green Party leader Elizabeth May runs, and
• whether former Conservative M.P. Paul Forseth is allowed to try for a comeback in New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC or whether his party tries to install a "star" candidate as he fears (and if so would it be former Vancouver South, BC Conservative candidate Wai Young, who may have made a very vague hint to that effect to Public Eye Online). The 2008 Conservative candidate in New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC, Yonah Martin, has since been appointed to the Senate. Young came within 20 votes of unseating Vancouver South Liberal M.P. Ujjal Dosanjh in the 2008 election.

So far, the NDP appears to have a contested nomination on their hands in New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC, the Conservatives and Liberals both have candidates actively seeking their parties' nominations in Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, NS, and as mentioned above Paul Forseth would like to return to Ottawa as well.

If you hear of nomination news in any of these prospective by-election seats, or anywhere else, please drop me a line to pass it along. Next I'll be posting a reprint of Part II of my Hill Times series on Candidate Election Spending with Bill Stanbury from last week, and then catching up on all the nomination news during my time away.

Labels: Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, New Westminster – Coquitlam, Vacant Seats

A couple of developments to report on one vacant seat, and one that's about to become vacant.

First, in the seat that is vacant, the Chief Electoral Officer announced today that he received the Speaker's warrant declaring Bill Casey's seat vacant yesterday. Thus, we can recalculate the exact dates affecting the calling of a by-election in Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, NS (and compare with those for New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC):

	CCMV	NWC
Date of resignation:	Thu Apr 30, 2009	Mon Apr 13, 2009
Date Speaker's warrant received by CEO:	Mon May 4, 2009	Thu Apr 16, 2009
Earliest date the by-election could be called (11 days later):	Fri May 15, 2009	Mon Apr 27, 2009
Earliest date the by-election could be held (first Monday at least 36 days after that):	Mon Jun 22, 2009	Mon Jun 8, 2009
Latest date the by-election could be called (180 days later):	Sat Oct 31, 2009	Tue Oct 13, 2009
Latest date the by-election could be held (first Monday at least 36 - [no maximum] days later):	on or after Mon Dec 7, 2009	on or after Mon Nov 23, 2009

Next, Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, QC Bloc Québécois M.P. Paul Crête was nominated this past Sunday as the Parti Québécois candidate for the forthcoming provincial by-election in Rivière-du-Loup, the seat recently vacated by former ADQ leader Mario Dumont. Crête hasn't resigned his Commons seat as yet, but the provincial by-election is not expected until June, so he has a bit of time yet.

Labels: Cumberland – Colchester – Musquodoboit Valley, Montmagny – L'Islet – Kamouraska – Rivière-du-Loup, New Westminster – Coquitlam, Vacant Seats

A couple of items from this morning's inbox:

• Newmarket – Aurora, ON - 2008 Liberal candidate Tim Jones is hoping to represent his party once again in the next election, and has revived his Facebook group to that end, a reader writes to say. Jones had hoped to replace retiring Liberal M.P. Belinda Stronach in the last election, but lost handily to first-time Conservative M.P. Lois Brown, in spite of spending a higher proportion of the expense limit (72% vs 65%).
• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - This morning's Hill Times reports the latest on Elizabeth May's plans in respect of this possible by-election riding: "[Q.] Will you be running in Dawn Black’s New Westminster-Coquitlam, B.C., riding that she recently vacated? [A.] 'I’m keeping all my options open and consulting widely with smarter people than me.'" (subscription-only story).
  

Reader contributions are what help us to track nominations right across the country, so if you have some news, please do pass it along.

Labels: 41st General Election Nominations, Greens, Liberals, New Westminster – Coquitlam

In an earlier blogpost, we noted that Dawn Black's resignation from the Commons was set to take effect on Monday, April 13, 2009 and calculated the earliest and latest dates that the by-election could be called ... assuming the Speaker's warrant advising of the vacancy was received by the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) on the same day.

Elections Canada has just announced that the CEO actually received the warrant yesterday. Thus we can now calculate the true dates for a by-election call in her riding of New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC as follows:

Date of resignation:	Mon Apr 13, 2009
Date Speaker's warrant received by CEO:	Thu Apr 16, 2009
Earliest date the by-election could be called (11 days later):	Mon Apr 27, 2009
Earliest date the by-election could be held (first Monday at least 36 days after that):	Mon Jun 8, 2009
Latest date the by-election could be called (180 days later):	Tue Oct 13, 2009
Latest date the by-election could be held (first Monday at least 36 - [no maximum] days later):	on or after Mon Nov 23, 2009

Labels: New Westminster – Coquitlam, Vacant Seats

From the Georgia Straight Online, news of a possible Liberal candidate and a third possible NDP candidate for the expected by-election to replace NDP M.P. Dawn Black, who is resigning on April 13 to run in the forthcoming B.C. provincial election:

• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - The Mayor of Port Moody, Joe Trasolini, confirms he is being courted by local Liberals to become their candidate if a by-election is held in this suburban Vancouver riding. For the NDP, Zoe Royer, a health sector administrator who ran against Conservative M.P. James Moore in the recent federal election in his adjacent riding of Port Moody – Westwood – Port Coquitlam, BC is also said to be considering a run.

Black was acclaimed the NDP candidate in the provincial riding of New Westminster for the provincial election to be held Tuesday, May 12.

Meantime, we should hear later today whether Peter MacKay has been successful in his bid to become the Secretary-General of NATO, thus opening up his Central Nova, NS seat for a second by-election. Should MacKay be successful at NATO, Green Party Leader Elizabeth May is expected to stay and contest the by-election in that seat. However, if not, she will have a decision to make about running in a west coast by-election instead.

UPDATE: Mr. MacKay was not selected for the NATO job, thus Ms. May has an interesting decision ahead of her.

Labels: Central Nova, Greens, Liberals, NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam

Remembering the rules about when a by-election can be called (and when it must be called):

By-elections

When a seat in the House of Commons becomes officially vacant, the Speaker of the House must inform the Chief Electoral Officer immediately. Between the 11th and the 180th day after receiving notification, the Chief Electoral Officer issues a writ to the returning officer of the electoral district concerned, directing him or her to hold a by-election. The date on the writ is determined by the Governor in Council.

and noting that Dawn Black's resignation from the Commons is set to take effect on Monday, April 13, 2009, then assuming the Speaker's warrant advising of the vacancy is received by the Chief Electoral Officer on the same day, we can therefore calculate the earliest and latest dates for a by-election call in her riding of New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC as follows:

Date of resignation:	Mon Apr 13, 2009
Earliest date the by-election could be called (11 days later):	Fri Apr 24, 2009
Earliest date the by-election could be held (first Monday at least 36 days after that):	Mon Jun 1, 2009
Latest date the by-election could be called (180 days later):	Sat Oct 10, 2009
Latest date the by-election could be held (first Monday at least 36 - [no maximum] days later):	on or after Mon Nov 16, 2009

There, you heard it here first.

Labels: New Westminster – Coquitlam, Vacant Seats

I'm just catching up with a Vancouver Sun story from a few days ago, which reported on another possible candidate for the NDP nomination in any by-election called to replace NDP M.P. Dawn Black, who is expected to be nominated this weekend for a provincial seat in May's B.C. election.

• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC -New Westminster city councillor Lorrie Williams says she may be interested in competing with Coquitlam city councillor Barrie Lynch for the right to carry the NDP flag once the seat opens up. Williams ran for the NDP once before in the pre-redistribution riding of New Westminster – Coquitlam – Burnaby in the 2000 General Election.
  

Labels: NDP, New Westminster – Coquitlam

This morning's Hill Times reports another development in the race to succeed Dawn Black:

• New Westminster – Coquitlam, BC - Former four-term Conservative M.P. Paul Forseth would like to try to regain his seat once again, but must persuade his party to conduct an open nomination meeting. The Hill Times reports that Forseth fears the party may "parachute a 'star' candidate" into the riding for the by-election instead.
  

Labels: New Westminster – Coquitlam