Long Range Mountains

Long Range Mountains is a federal electoral district stretching along the entire west coast of the island of Newfoundland, from Channel-Port aux Basques and Burgeo in the south to St. Anthony and the L'Anse aux Meadows Viking settlement at the northern tip. With a 2021 census population of approximately 81,795, the riding's largest communities are Corner Brook (population 19,260), Stephenville (population 6,540), and Deer Lake. The riding takes its name from the Long Range Mountains, a northern extension of the Appalachian chain running along the western coast.

Candidates

Gudie Hutchings (Liberal) was born in 1959 and grew up in the Humber Valley near Corner Brook. She attended Acadia University before building a career spanning nearly three decades in the tourism and outfitting industries, including operating fly fishing lodges in Labrador. Hutchings served as president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Outfitters Association, sat on the inaugural national board of the Canadian Federation of Outfitting Associations, and was president of the Corner Brook Chamber of Commerce. She also chaired the Battle Harbour Historic Trust before entering federal politics, winning the riding in 2015.

Carol Anstey (Conservative) was raised in Deer Lake, where she and her husband Dwayne have lived for most of their lives. She holds a Bachelor of Arts with a major in sociology from Acadia University and a paralegal certificate from Academy Canada. After running a wedding boutique beginning in 2005, Anstey moved into real estate sales with Re/Max in 2008, eventually building a brokerage with four offices across western Newfoundland and Labrador.

Kaila Mintz (NDP) left Newfoundland to pursue higher education and earned a master's degree in Immigration and Settlement Studies. She spent seven years at Global Affairs Canada in Ottawa before working as coordinator for a global advocacy campaign focused on ending sexual abuse by United Nations personnel. Mintz returned to Newfoundland during the pandemic to reestablish roots in the province.

Darrell Shelley (PPC) was born in Labrador and raised in Stephenville, graduating from St. Stephen's High School in 1998. He founded Mighty Mouse Staffing, an event staffing company in Toronto that employed hundreds of workers for major events across southern Ontario, and created The Scene Magazine, overseeing 50 freelance journalists and publishing over 5,000 articles.

About the Riding

Long Range Mountains encompasses some of Newfoundland's most spectacular landscapes, including Gros Morne National Park, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987 for its outstanding examples of continental drift geology, including exposed deep ocean crust and mantle rock. The park and the broader west coast attract significant tourism traffic, supporting seasonal employment in hospitality and recreation.

Corner Brook, the riding's economic anchor, is home to the Corner Brook Pulp and Paper mill, owned by Kruger Inc. In 2021, the mill's payroll and benefits totalled $40 million, with average annual salaries of approximately $82,000, making it one of western Newfoundland's most important employers. Stephenville was originally built around Ernest Harmon Air Force Base, a United States military installation that operated from 1941 to 1966. After the base closed, the town transitioned to other industries, though the loss of its paper mill in 2005 was a further economic setback.

The riding's cultural fabric reflects English, Irish, Mi'kmaq, and French influences, with L'Anse aux Meadows at the northern tip preserving evidence of the earliest known European settlement in the Americas, dating to approximately 1000 AD. Federal issues in the 2021 campaign included support for the struggling forestry sector, investment in rural broadband infrastructure, health care staffing in regional hospitals, carbon tax impacts on home heating costs, and the management of northern cod stocks. The race was competitive, with Hutchings winning by a margin of approximately 1,800 votes over Anstey.