Voters casting ballots in 3 byelections

Voters are casting ballots in Toronto and Montreal in a trio of byelections Monday which will decide whether Prime Minister Mark Carney should get a majority government.

The polls are set to close at 8:30 p.m. ET.

Carney is widely expected to clinch the majority, since the two Toronto ridings are considered safe. But political watchers will be fixated on the closely fought race in Quebec.

The Montreal suburb of Terrebonne was a knock-down, drag-out fight between the Bloc Québécois and the governing party.

That riding saw nearly 20 per cent voter turnout in the advance polls. 

Liberals dispatched top cabinet ministers — virtually all the Quebec ministers — along with Dominic LeBlanc and even Gregor Robertson from far away Vancouver, plus the prime minister himself, to stump for their candidate, Tatiana Auguste.

And they marshalled staff from ridings nearby to door knock and get out the vote in a riding they won a year ago by just one vote.

In February, the Supreme Court of Canada annulled the Terrebonne result due to a clerical error on the return address for some mail-in ballots.

The local Bloc candidate Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné said she was frequently congratulated at the doorstep for winning the case that prompted the byelection.

"They were quite disappointed by the mistake Elections Canada made, but they were happy that I took the case all the way up to the Supreme Court. So I think people are, are thankful for that and grateful," she said.

"We've been doing a great campaign … convincing citizens one-by-one," Sinclair-Desgagné added. "We're looking forward to having, hopefully, a clear result."

Health Minister Marjorie Michel, who was among the top Liberals who helped out and organized to win the longtime Bloc riding, admits that last time, the Liberals won it in a wave. 

But she said there's a good chance they'll hold it after campaigning hard at a time when the government enjoys high levels of approval amid global uncertainty.

"I did a lot of doors and this is what people were saying: people feel that the prime minister is comforting them. They are not scared because he's there," Michel said.

"A lot of people are talking about a majority, et cetera, but I would tell you in that specific election, it’s a local door-to-door election. It’s a battle."

The two other byelections are in Toronto, called to replace Liberal MPs Bill Blair and Chrystia Freeland in the Toronto ridings. They're expected to stay Liberal and push the party into a majority in the House of Commons.

The Liberals stand at 171 seats after attracting five opposition MPs to cross the floor. The floor crossings began in October with Nova Scotia MP Chris D'Entremont leaving the Conservatives for the Liberals. 

He was followed by Toronto-area MP Michael Ma in December and Edmonton MP Matt Jeneroux in February.

Lori Idlout, the lone Nunavut MP, left the NDP for the government benches in March. 

Marilyn Gladu, a four-term Ontario Conservative MP, shocked political watchers last week with her defection to the Liberals. 

Gladu has been a strong critic of the government's use of the Emergencies Act to end the "Freedom Convoy's" occupation of downtown Ottawa and more recently the government's anti-hate bill, C-9, due to concerns about religious liberties. 

Carney needs 172 MPs for a technical majority, but 173 to effectively govern with one. 

Speaker Francis Scarpaleggia, a Quebec Liberal, only votes in the case of a tie. If the Liberals only have 172 seats, they would have the same number of votes as the opposition without Scarpaleggia's vote.

In events where the speaker votes, they historically maintain the status quo in the spirit of neutrality. This means the speaker is unlikely to vote in favour of new legislation, but would support the government on a confidence vote. 

If the Liberals secure a majority, they would also be able to change the standing orders of the House to also have control of committees. Currently, the Bloc has the deciding vote on committees with the Liberals and Conservatives having the same number of voting members. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 13, 2026.

By Kyle Duggan | Copyright 2026, The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.