Quebec solidaire claims victory in hotly contested Montreal byelection

Quebec solidaire claimed victory in a provincial byelection in the Montreal riding of Saint-Henri-Sainte-Anne, capturing the once Liberal stronghold on Monday night.

 

Guillaume Cliche-Rivard, an immigration lawyer, will represent the southwestern Montreal riding and had a sizeable lead with 45 per cent of the vote with about 80 per cent of boxes counted.

 

The Liberal candidate, Christopher Baenninger, was in second place with just over 28 per cent of the vote in a riding the Liberals had won 10 times in a row since its creation in 1994.

 

Cliche-Rivard had lost to former Liberal leader Dominique Anglade in last October's provincial election by 2,700 votes.

 

• READ MORE: Saint-Henri-Sainte-Anne by-election: Here's what you need to know

 

Anglade resigned her seat and stepped down as Liberal leader after winning less than 15 per cent of vote, triggering a byelection to choose a new member of the provincial legislature to replace her.

 

The Parti Quebecois was running in third place in the riding while the Coalition Avenir Quebec was in fourth.

 

After claiming its victory, Quebec solidaire now has 12 seats in the provincial legislature, the Liberals hold 19, the PQ have three and there are two independents.

 

Francois Legault's Coalition Avenir Quebec holds 89 of the legislature's 125 seats.

Polls closed at 8 p.m. Monday.

As of 10 p.m., here are the latest results reported by Elections Quebec:

• Guillaume Cliche-Rivard (QS): 7,660 votes
• Christopher Baenninger (PLQ): 4,993 votes
• Andréanne Fiola (PQ): 1,937 votes
• Victor Pelletier (CAQ): 1,599 votes
• Lucien Koty (PCQ): 465 votes
• Jean-Pierre Duford (PVQ): 243 votes

LISTEN on CJAD 800 Radio: Mulcair: Quebec Solidaire wins the byelection

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on March 13, 2023.