The Nanaimo-Ladysmith riding is still without an MP after a tight three-way race many predicted, materialized on Monday, Sep. 20. (Wikimedia Commons)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

what happens next

Solving the Nanaimo-Ladysmith stalemate, next steps for Canada’s 44th Parliament

Sep 21, 2021 | 7:44 AM

NANAIMO — Residents in the mid-Island riding of Nanaimo-Ladysmith were no closer to finding out who their MP will be at 10 p.m. than they were at 7 a.m. on election day.

With all polls reporting their counts of both election day and advance votes, the NDP’s Lisa Marie Barron and Conservative Tamara Kronis were separated by less than 1,000 votes. Incumbent Green Paul Manly trailed Kronis by another 1,800.

With a margin of victory so narrow for the Barron at the close of counting on Monday, Sept. 20, the riding’s fate will go down to mail-in ballots.

Elections Canada said approximately 8,800 ballots were requested from the riding, however the exact number returned on time is unknown.

In 2019, 3,037 special ballots were tabulated with the individual totals for each candidate roughly following election day trends. The difference was Manly was already projected to win comfortably over then-Conservative candidate John Hirst.

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The count of Nanaimo-Ladysmith’s 8,000+ mail-in ballots won’t begin until Friday, Sep. 24, with a winner potentially being declared in the afternoon or evening.

Should the margin be incredibly narrow then potential recounts will become an option at the disposal of the losing campaign.

Federally, Justin Trudeau’s Liberals have another minority mandate and will require assistance from the other parties in order to pass legislation.

At the dissolution of Parliament in August, the Liberals had 155 seats to the Conservatives 119, totals which have not changed enough to shift the balance of power in Ottawa.

The Governor General will soon invite Trudeau to form government. In 2019, the first session of the 43rd Parliament began approximately six weeks after election day.

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