Liberal Bruce Fanjoy topples Pierre Poilievre in Carleton
Conservative leader projected to lose his longtime Ottawa riding
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is projected to lose his longtime rural Ottawa seat to Liberal Bruce Fanjoy.
Poilievre had won the area seven times in a row going back to his first win in 2004. While official results are not available, the preliminary results suggest Fanjoy won by about 3,800 votes, getting just over 50 per cent support.
"We've focused on the work that we had to do all along and believ[ing] that if we did the work, if we met enough people and spread a positive message, that the numbers would take care of themselves," Fanjoy said on CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning on Tuesday.
He attributed his victory to worry about the American president's threats toward Canada.
"People in Carleton are very concerned about Donald Trump and the tariffs and what that means for our economy," he said.
"They're been looking for serious leadership and they saw that in in Mark Carney's Liberals."
Fanjoy said he would work to earn the support of Carleton voters who did not support him "by showing up, by listening, by providing solutions."
Prime Minister Carney congratulated Fanjoy in his own victory speech.
"And for those who were elected, particularly those Liberals who were elected, I am looking forward to working together to deliver for Canadians," Carney said.
Responding to a supporter calling out Fanjoy's name, Carney continued: "Yes, Bruce Fanjoy. I'm looking forward to working with Bruce Fanjoy. Fantastic. He will be a great MP."
Record-tying candidate list
Fanjoy lives in the village of Manotick, where he built a carbon-neutral house.
He worked in business and marketing before stepping back to be a parent and volunteer — and now MP-elect.
The advocacy group Longest Ballot, which tries to get as many candidates as possible on a ballot to call attention to the idea of an independent electoral reform process, told CBC News it targeted Carleton.
Because of this, there were a record-tying 91 candidates on the final ballot. CBC did not project the winner until nearly 5 a.m. ET, more than eight hours after polls closed.
The crowded field turned into a two-horse race with Fanjoy and Poilievre getting more than 80,000 combined votes. The third-place NDP picked up about 1,200, the Greens and United Party were in the triple digits, and every other candidate fell below 100 votes.
Carleton now stretches from Renfrew County to Prescott-Russell because of the independent review that followed the 2021 census.
It added communities such as Constance Bay and Fitzroy Harbour to Metcalfe, Osgoode and Stittsville. It also took the area of Piperville and Anderson roads from Orléans, and more land west of Highway 416 from Nepean.
Findlay Creek moved to Ottawa South.
