Canada
Six federal by-elections called for December 7 — including two Montreal seats the Liberals must defend
Prime Minister Mark Carney has set December 7 for by-elections in six ridings across Ontario, Quebec, Saskatchewan and Alberta, testing his government's standing one month after the budget.
Published: November 1, 2026 · Updated: November 1, 2026 · 1 min read
Six ridings, four provinces
Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Sunday that by-elections will be held on December 7, 2026, in six federal ridings, the Prime Minister's Office said. The ridings are Brantford—Brant South in Ontario; Laurier—Sainte-Marie and Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie in Montreal; Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot—Acton in Quebec; Scarborough North in Toronto; and Yorkton—Melville in Saskatchewan. The announcement, dated November 1 from Ottawa, sets the votes exactly five weeks out — and one month after the federal budget lands on November 5.
What is at stake
By-elections rarely change who governs, but they are read closely as a mid-term verdict on the government of the day — and two of these seats sit in Montreal, where the Liberals' grip has been tested before. Laurier—Sainte-Marie is the prime minister's own former Montreal base in the city's core, while Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie has long been contested ground between the Liberals, the Bloc Québécois and the NDP. In Ontario, Brantford—Brant South and Scarborough North will test the Liberals in very different kinds of seats — a southwestern Ontario riding and a Toronto suburban one — while Yorkton—Melville in Saskatchewan is traditionally Conservative territory, where the contest is more about margins than the outcome. The December 7 date also puts the campaigns squarely in the pre-Christmas window, when voter attention is at its thinnest — a factor that tends to favour parties with the strongest ground organizations.
Why it matters now
The timing is pointed: the votes come one month after the November 5 budget, giving voters in six ridings a first ballot-box chance to react to the government's fiscal plan. They also come as the Conservatives press the affordability case daily and as the government leans on its trade-diversification agenda. Watch for candidate announcements in the coming days, and for whether the campaigns become a referendum on the budget or stay local.
Sources
- Prime Minister of Canada · other
Mark CarneyParliamentLiberal Partyby-electionsQuebec
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