2019 York—Simcoe federal by-election

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| <- 2015 | February 25, 2019 (2019-02-25) | Oct. 2019 ->

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Riding of York—Simcoe
Turnout| 20.03% ( 43.23pp)
|  | First party  | Second party  | Third party

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LPC

NDP

Candidate  | Scot Davidson | Shaun Tanaka  | Jessa McLean
Party  | Conservative | Liberal | New Democratic
Popular vote  | 8,929 | 4,811  | 1,244
Percentage  | 53.91% | 29.04%  | 7.51%
Swing  |  3.66pp |  8.72pp |  1.38pp

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| MP before election

Peter Van Loan
Conservative

| Elected MP

Scot Davidson
Conservative

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A by-election was held in the federal riding of York—Simcoe in Ontario on February 25, 2019, following the resignation of incumbent Conservative MP Peter Van Loan. After 15 years in Parliament, the former Leader of the Official Opposition announced that he would resign his seat. The by-election occurred alongside two others; Outremont and Burnaby South.

The seat was held for the Conservatives by Scot Davidson.[1]

## Background

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### Constituency

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York—Simcoe is a rural constituency based in the York Region and Simcoe County, just to the north of the Greater Toronto Area. York—Simcoe has been considered a safe seat for the Conservatives, but at the 2015 election the Liberal Party saw a huge increase in share of vote; 26 percentage points.[2]

### Representation

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Peter Van Loan announced on July 29, 2018, that he would be resigning as MP for York—Simcoe effective September 30, 2018. Van Loan has held the seat since the riding's creation in 2004.[3]

## Campaign

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Scot Davidson, Heather Fullerton, and Jason Verkaik sought the Conservative nomination.[4] In a nomination meeting on October 20, Scot Davidson was declared the Conservative candidate.[5]

Shaun Tanaka, a local professor and the riding's 2015 Liberal candidate, won the Liberal nomination.[6]

In a nomination meeting on December 6, Jessa McLean was acclaimed as the NDP candidate.[7]

The People's Party announced Robert Geurts as their candidate.[8]

Sébastien Corriveau, leader of the Rhinoceros Party, stated his intention to run in this by-election,[9] but he did not register.

The candidate of the Libertarian Party was Keith Komar.[10]

The Speaker's warrant regarding the vacancy was received on October 1, 2018; under the Parliament of Canada Act the writ for a by-election had to be dropped no later than March 30, 2019, 180 days after the Chief Electoral Officer was officially notified of the vacancy via a warrant issued by the Speaker.[11] The by-election was called on January 9, 2019, to be held on February 25, 2019.[12]

## Results

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Canadian federal by-election, February 25, 2019: York—Simcoe
Resignation of Peter Van Loan

Party  | Candidate  | Votes | % | ±%
| Conservative | Scot Davidson | 8,929 | 53.91 | 3.66
| Liberal | Shaun Tanaka | 4,811 | 29.04 | 8.72
| New Democratic | Jessa McLean | 1,244 | 7.51 | 1.38
| Progressive Canadian | Dorian Baxter | 634 | 3.83 | \--
| Green | Mathew Lund | 451 | 2.72 | 0.37
| People's | Robert Geurts | 314 | 1.90 | \--
| Libertarian | Keith Dean Komar | 95 | 0.57 | \--
| Independent | John The Engineer Turmel | 64 | 0.39 | \--
| National Citizens Alliance | Adam Suhr | 22 | 0.13 | \--
Total valid votes/expense limit  | 16,564 | 99.43
Total rejected ballots  | 95 | 0.57 | +0.09
Turnout  | 16,659 | 20.03 | -43.23
Eligible voters  | 83,179
| Conservative hold | Swing | +6.19
Source: Elections Canada[13]

## 2015 result

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2015 Canadian federal election

Party  | Candidate  | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures
| Conservative | Peter Van Loan | 24,058 | 50.25 | 13.42 | $138,801.13
| Liberal | Shaun Tanaka | 18,083 | 37.77 | 26.43 | $62,296.23
| New Democratic | Sylvia Gerl | 4,255 | 8.89 | 9.69 | $12,736.48
| Green | Mark Viitala | 1,483 | 3.1 | 2.26 | -
Total valid votes/Expense limit  | 47,879 | 100.0  |  | $208,120.39
Total rejected ballots  | 232 | 0.48 | 0.08
Turnout  | 48,111 | 63.66 | 5.06
Eligible voters  | 75,570
Source: Elections Canada[14][15]

## References

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1. ^ "Scot Davidson keeps York-Simcoe riding Tory blue". thestar.com. February 25, 2019. Retrieved November 19, 2020.
2. ^ "York—Simcoe", Wikipedia, September 7, 2020, retrieved November 19, 2020
3. ^ "Peter Van Loan, former House Leader under Stephen Harper, retiring". Toronto Star. Canadian Press. July 29, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2018.
4. ^ Heidi, Riedner (September 12, 2018). "York-Simcoe Tory nomination garners 3 bids for federal riding". Georgina Advocate. YorkRegion.com. Retrieved September 15, 2018.
5. ^ King, Miriam (October 24, 2018). "Conservative Party votes in new York-Simcoe representative". BarrieToday.com. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
6. ^ Riedner, Heidi (January 14, 2019). "Shaun Tanaka gets Liberal nod to run in York-Simcoe federal byelection". YorkRegion.com. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
7. ^ Champion, Kim (December 10, 2018). "York-Simcoe acclaimed NDP candidate undaunted by challenges ahead". NewmarketToday.ca. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
8. ^ "Media release - The People's Party of Canada Nominates Prominent Toronto Lawyer for York-Simcoe By-Election". People's Party of Canada. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
9. ^ @CorRhino (January 21, 2019). "I launch my campaign in the York Simcoe by-election" (Tweet) - via Twitter.
10. ^ "Upcoming by-elections update". Libertarian Party of Canada. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
11. ^ "Vacant Seats in the House of Commons Since the 2015 General Election". Elections Canada. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
12. ^ Tunney, Catharine (January 9, 2019). "Trudeau calls byelections for 3 seats, including B.C. riding sought by NDP's Singh". CBC. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
13. ^ "February 25, 2019 By-elections Election Results". Elections Canada. February 28, 2019. Archived from the original on May 1, 2019.
14. ^ Elections Canada – Confirmed candidates for York—Simcoe, 30 September 2015
15. ^ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates

* v
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« 41st Parliament « By-elections to the 42nd Parliament of Canada » 43rd Parliament »

2016|

* October: Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner

2017|

* April: Calgary Heritage
* Calgary Midnapore
* Markham—Thornhill
* Ottawa—Vanier
* Saint-Laurent
October: Lac-Saint-Jean
* Sturgeon River—Parkland
December: Battlefords—Lloydminster
* Bonavista—Burin—Trinity
* Scarborough—Agincourt
* South Surrey—White Rock

2018|

* June: Chicoutimi—Le Fjord
December: Leeds—Grenville—Thousand Islands and Rideau Lakes

2019|

* February: Burnaby South
* Outremont
* York—Simcoe
May: Nanaimo—Ladysmith

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