Canada 2015 election: Riding boundaries shift in Waterloo Region
This federal election Waterloo Region has a new riding called Kitchener South-Hespeler, with the boundaries of Kitchener-Centre, Waterloo, Kitchener-Conestoga and Cambridge shifting to accommodate.
The federal election map has been re-drawn, changing approximately 87 per cent of federal ridings, according to Elections Canada. There are 30 new federal ridings across Canada, with 15 in Ontario alone.
To find out what riding you'll be voting in on October 19, type your address in the CBC interactive map below:
Races in Ontario's new ridings are likely to be competitive, said Wilfrid Laurier University political scientist Barry Kay.
"What they've done is create a whole lot more competitive seats, whose determination on election day will be influenced by the trends at the moment," said Kay in an interview with CBC News.
"Generally speaking, they tend to be in suburban areas around central city cores and history suggests to us that those are the kinds of seats that sometimes go Conservative, sometimes go Liberal, in some areas NDP….but what they are indeed is swing seats."
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Here's how the boundaries are shifting locally:
- The new riding, Kitchener South - Hespeler, encompasses the south end of Kitchener and north end of Cambridge. It's made up of chunks from the ridings of Kitchener-Conestoga, Cambridge, and a small piece from Kitchener Centre
- Kitchener Centre, which encompasses most of central Kitchener, has shrunk slightly from the west and south ends, and grown slightly to the north.
- Waterloo, previously known as Kitchener-Waterloo, has shrunk slightly on the south end of its border
- Kitchener-Conestoga, which encompasses much of Waterloo Region's rural townships, has shrunk to accomodate Kitchener South - Hespeler and expanded slightly into Kitchener Centre and Waterloo's former western territory.
- Cambridge, which covers Cambridge south of Highway 401 and the township of North Dumfries, has expanded south into the County of Brant, while losing a north end to Kitchener South - Hespeler