Fredericton

Straddling the banks of the Wolastoq (Saint John River) in central New Brunswick, the Fredericton riding centres on the provincial capital and extends south to encompass the garrison community of Oromocto and the suburb of New Maryland. As the seat of the provincial legislature and home to two universities — the University of New Brunswick and St. Thomas University — the riding's workforce is heavily shaped by government, education, and a growing technology sector that has earned the city recognition as Atlantic Canada's knowledge economy capital.

Candidates

Jenica Atwin (Green Party) — A cultural transition coordinator and researcher from Oromocto, Atwin spent four years working with First Nation Education Initiative Incorporated, supporting Indigenous youth transitioning between reserve and urban school environments. She held a Master of Education from the University of New Brunswick and had co-organized a We Day spin-off event in 2016 focused on connecting First Nations youth across the province.

Andrea Johnson (Conservative) — Originally from Ontario, Johnson had relocated to New Brunswick and built a career in the technology startup sector before joining the provincial government, where she worked on business recruitment and economic development files. She emerged from the first all-female Conservative nomination contest in the riding's history.

Matt DeCourcey (Liberal) — The incumbent MP, DeCourcey was first elected in 2015 and had served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. A Fredericton native, he also sat on the Special Committee on Electoral Reform and chaired the government's Youth Caucus during his term.

Mackenzie Thomason (NDP) — At twenty-one years old, Thomason was serving as interim leader of the New Brunswick NDP at the time of the federal campaign. He had previously run as a provincial NDP candidate in the 2018 New Brunswick general election in the riding of New Maryland-Sunbury.

Jason Paull (People's Party) — Paull carried the People's Party banner in Fredericton. Minor candidates also included Lesley Thomas (Animal Protection Party), Brandon Kirby (Libertarian), and Jacob Patterson (Communist).

About the Riding

Fredericton functions as the administrative nerve centre of New Brunswick, with the provincial government and its agencies constituting the single largest employer. The University of New Brunswick, Canada's oldest English-language university, and the smaller St. Thomas University anchor a significant post-secondary sector that drives research activity, particularly in cybersecurity, forestry science, and engineering. A cluster of information technology firms — many with roots in UNB's computer science faculty — has diversified the local economy beyond its traditional public-sector base. Oromocto, at the riding's southern edge, is home to Canadian Forces Base Gagetown, one of the largest military training facilities in the Commonwealth, which injects substantial federal spending into the local economy. The riding also includes St. Mary's First Nation and Oromocto First Nation. Heading into the 2019 campaign, issues of particular concern included the federal carbon price, affordable housing in a city experiencing population growth fuelled by immigration, and the future of military infrastructure at CFB Gagetown.