Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Lachine

Stretching across the western portion of the Island of Montreal, this riding combined the established residential neighbourhood of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (NDG) with the borough of Lachine along the St. Lawrence River, and included the independent municipalities of Dorval and Montreal West. With a population of approximately 105,000, it was a densely populated urban riding with a mix of anglophone, francophone, and allophone communities.

Candidates

Isabelle Morin (NDP) — A secondary school teacher of French and drama at Cavelier-De LaSalle, Morin held a diploma in literature from Cégep François-Xavier-Garneau and a bachelor of education from the Université de Sherbrooke. During her university years, she had served as executive vice-president of the Sherbrooke students' federation and sat on the board of the Fédération universitaire du Québec. This was her first run for federal office.

Marlene Jennings (Liberal) — A lawyer and former Deputy Commissioner of Police Ethics for the Province of Quebec (1990 to 1997), Jennings was first elected to Parliament in 1997, succeeding longtime MP Warren Allmand. Over her fourteen years in the House of Commons she had served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Solicitor General, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for International Cooperation, and Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister for Canada-U.S. relations under Paul Martin. She was a member of the Privy Council and one of the most prominent anglophone Liberal MPs in Quebec.

Matthew Conway (Conservative) — Conway ran as the Conservative candidate in the riding.

Gabrielle Ladouceur-Despins (Bloc Québécois) — Ladouceur-Despins carried the Bloc banner in a riding where the party had limited appeal.

Jessica Gal ran for the Green Party, David Andrew Lovett as an independent, and Rachel Hoffman for the Marxist-Leninist Party.

About the Riding

Notre-Dame-de-Grâce was a predominantly residential neighbourhood on a plateau extending southwest from Mount Royal, known for its tree-lined streets, diverse population, and vibrant commercial strips along Sherbrooke Street and Monkland Avenue. The neighbourhood attracted a broad range of residents from young professionals and families to immigrant communities, with significant anglophone, francophone, and allophone populations. Montreal West, a small independent municipality, contributed an established English-speaking community.

Lachine, situated on the shores of Lake Saint-Louis at the western end of the Lachine Canal, had a deep industrial heritage dating to the canal's opening in 1825. The canal corridor had once been the largest industrial zone in Canada, but by 2011 it had largely transitioned into a revitalized mix of residential condominiums, recreational paths, and light commercial use. Dorval, home to Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, added an aviation and transportation employment base to the riding.

The riding had been considered one of the safest Liberal seats in Canada — Jennings had won her previous contests by margins of 10,000 to 20,000 votes. Federal issues of local concern included transportation infrastructure, bilingual federal services, urban revitalization along the Lachine Canal corridor, and support for the riding's diverse immigrant communities.