Saint-Laurent

Saint-Laurent is a federal electoral district in Montreal, Quebec, encompassing the borough of Saint-Laurent on the island of Montreal. The by-election was called following the resignation of Liberal MP Stephane Dion, who had represented the riding since 1996. Dion, who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs, stepped down on February 6, 2017 after accepting an appointment as Canada's Ambassador to Germany and Special Envoy to the European Union.

Candidates

Emmanuella Lambropoulos (Liberal) — A 26-year-old French and history teacher at Rosemount High School in Montreal, Lambropoulos grew up in the Saint-Laurent borough. She held a Bachelor of Education from McGill University and was completing a Master's degree in Educational Leadership at the same institution. She won the Liberal nomination in an upset over several higher-profile candidates.

Jimmy Yu (Conservative) — A Conservative Party national councillor who had previously run in Saint-Laurent in the 2015 general election. Yu moved to Canada from China in 1981 and had strong ties to the riding's Chinese community.

Daniel Green (Green Party) — Deputy Leader of the Green Party of Canada since 2014, Green is an environmental scientist who led la Societe pour Vaincre la Pollution, a pioneering Quebec environmental organization, for nearly two decades. He has worked as a consultant for Sierra Club of Canada, Nature Quebec, and Parks Canada.

Mathieu Auclair (NDP) — Auclair held a bachelor's degree in social science and history from UQAM and was studying international relations at TELUQ. He held a pilot's license and advocated for supporting the aerospace industry in Saint-Laurent.

William Fayad (Bloc Quebecois) — The Bloc Quebecois candidate in the by-election.

About the Riding

Saint-Laurent is the largest of Montreal's boroughs by land area, located in the north-central part of the island of Montreal. The borough is known for its excellent accessibility to major highways and the public transit system, as well as its numerous parks and green spaces. The riding's population is highly diverse, with approximately 45 percent of residents born outside Canada.

Saint-Laurent is the second-largest employment centre in the Montreal metropolitan region after downtown, home to approximately 5,000 companies and commercial establishments. The borough hosts Technoparc Montreal's Campus Saint-Laurent, the largest technology park in Canada. The aerospace industry is a major employer in the riding, with companies like Bombardier and other manufacturers operating facilities in the area.

The riding's population of approximately 103,000 is served by two libraries, a recreation centre, a sports complex, an arena, and some 50 parks. Saint-Laurent has experienced demographic growth of over 10 percent in recent years, well above the metropolitan average.