Voters head to the polls in 4 federal byelections
Source: CBC News
Posted: 11/09/09 1:13PM
Filed Under: Top News
Polls have opened in four federal byelections in British Columbia, Nova Scotia and Quebec with the NDP and Conservatives hoping to stage upset victories in some tight contests.
Despite some close races, it is expected the status quo will ultimately prevail once the votes are tallied.
Most predict the Bloc Québécois will hold on to its two ridings Hochelaga in east-end Montreal and Montmagny-L'Islet-Kamouraska-Rivière du Loup in eastern Quebec.
The Bloc party candidates won well over half the votes in 2008.
But the NDP has its sights set on Hochelaga, where Jean-Claude Rocheleau is giving the Bloc's Daniel Paille, a former Parti Québécois cabinet minister, a run for his money. The Liberals finished a distant second in the 2008 general election.
In Montmagny-L'Islet-Kamouraska-Rivière du Loup, the Conservatives have pinned their hopes on Bernard Genereux, the former mayor of La Pocatière. Genereux has provided stiff competition for the Bloc's Nancy Gagnon. The Tories finished 16 percentage points behind the Bloc in 2008.
The B.C. riding of New Westminster-Coquitla was held by former New Democrat MP Dawn Black, who left to run for a seat in the provincial legislature.
Black beat her Conservative candidate by more than 1,000 votes in the last federal vote. The Tories had held the riding as recently as 2004. Local councillor Fin Donnelly is hoping to retain the seat but is in a fight against Conservative candidate Diana Dilworth, another local councillor.
The Tories are also hoping Conservative candidate Scott Armstrong will reclaim the Nova Scotia riding of Cumberland-Colchester-Musquodoboit Valley.
The riding had been a long-time Tory stronghold until Bill Casey captured it as an independent in 2008. Casey was booted out of the Tory caucus in 2007 for publicly criticizing the budget.
The Liberals don't appear to be factors in any of the races. They are expected to do no better than a distant third.
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