Brandon—Souris

Brandon—Souris was a federal riding in southwestern Manitoba anchored by the city of Brandon, the province's second-largest city. The by-election was called after Conservative MP Merv Tweed resigned his seat effective August 31, 2013, to become president of OmniTRAX Canada, a short-line railway company. Tweed had held the seat since 2004.

Candidates

Larry Maguire (Conservative) — Maguire was a lifelong farmer from Elgin, Manitoba, who held a diploma in agriculture from the University of Manitoba. He had been named mid-Canada's Outstanding Young Farmer in 1986 and served as president of the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association from 1995 to 1999. He was elected to the Manitoba legislature in 1999 as a Progressive Conservative MLA and served four consecutive terms, including a stint as deputy leader under Hugh McFadyen.

Rolf Dinsdale (Liberal) — Dinsdale had experience in publishing and media sales and had recently returned to Brandon from Toronto. His father, Walter Dinsdale, was the area's Progressive Conservative MP for 32 years, and his grandfather, George Dinsdale, served as Brandon's mayor and as a member of the Manitoba legislature.

Cory Szczepanski (NDP) — Szczepanski ran as the NDP candidate in the riding.

David Michael Neufeld (Green Party) — Neufeld ran as the Green Party candidate in the riding.

About the Riding

Brandon—Souris covered the southwestern corner of Manitoba, bordered by Saskatchewan to the west, North Dakota to the south, and the ridings of Dauphin—Swan River—Neepawa and Portage—Lisgar to the north and east. The riding included the city of Brandon as well as the smaller communities of Virden, Souris, Killarney, and numerous rural municipalities.

Brandon, with a population of approximately 46,000, served as the economic hub of western Manitoba. Major employers included Maple Leaf Foods (a large pork processing plant), Brandon University, Assiniboine Community College, and the Brandon Regional Health Centre. The city was also home to Canadian Forces Base Shilo. The surrounding agricultural land produced grain, oilseeds, and livestock, making agriculture the dominant industry outside the city.

The riding's character was a blend of small-city urbanism in Brandon and vast stretches of prairie farmland. Turtle Mountain Provincial Park sat on the southern boundary near the American border, and the western portion of Spruce Woods Provincial Park was located in the northeast. The riding had historically been one of the safest Conservative seats in Manitoba, held by the party and its predecessors since 1953 with the sole exception of 1993 to 1997, when vote-splitting between the Progressive Conservatives and Reform Party allowed a Liberal victory.