Sherbrooke

Sherbrooke was an urban riding centred on the city of Sherbrooke, the largest city in Quebec's Eastern Townships and the economic capital of the Estrie administrative region. Located at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers, the riding encompassed most of the city proper and was entirely surrounded by the neighbouring riding of Compton—Stanstead. With a population approaching 155,000 in the broader city, Sherbrooke was the sixth-largest city in Quebec.

Candidates

Pierre-Luc Dusseault (NDP) — Born in 1991 and raised in the Eastern Townships, Dusseault was a first-year student in applied politics at the Université de Sherbrooke at the time of his candidacy. He held a DEC diploma in social studies from CEGEP de Sherbrooke and had co-founded and presided over the university's student NDP club after joining the party in 2009. At 19, he was among the youngest candidates in the country.

Serge Cardin (Bloc Québécois) — The incumbent MP, Cardin was born in 1950 and held a bachelor's degree in business administration from the Université de Sherbrooke. A chartered general accountant by profession, he had served as a city councillor in Sherbrooke from 1986 to 1998 before winning the riding in a 1998 federal by-election called after Jean Charest resigned his federal seat to lead the Quebec Liberal Party. Cardin was re-elected in the 2000, 2004, 2006, and 2008 general elections and served as the BQ critic for natural resources.

Éric Deslauriers (Liberal) — Deslauriers ran as the Liberal candidate in Sherbrooke.

Pierre Harvey (Conservative) — Harvey carried the Conservative banner in the riding.

Jacques Laberge ran for the Green Party, and Crédible Berlingot Landry for the Rhinoceros Party.

About the Riding

Sherbrooke was defined by its role as a major university city. The Université de Sherbrooke and Bishop's University together anchored an educational ecosystem of eight post-secondary institutions that educated some 40,000 students and employed 11,000 people, giving Sherbrooke the highest concentration of university students per capita in Quebec. The direct economic impact of these institutions exceeded one billion dollars, making education the single most important pillar of the local economy.

Beyond academia, Sherbrooke had a diversified manufacturing base that included textiles, heavy machinery, rubber and leather goods, dairy products, and pulp and paper. The Centre hospitalier universitaire de Sherbrooke (CHUS) was a major regional employer and teaching hospital. The city also served as the administrative and commercial hub for the broader Estrie region, hosting provincial government offices, regional services, and a substantial retail sector.

The riding had been held by the Bloc Québécois since Cardin's 1998 by-election victory, though the seat's history reflected broader political shifts—it was previously held by Jean Charest as a Progressive Conservative MP and then as leader of that party. Federal issues of local concern included support for post-secondary education and research, health-care funding, and economic diversification for the regional economy.