Madawaska—Restigouche

Madawaska—Restigouche covers the northwestern corner of New Brunswick, running from the Maine border along the upper Saint John River valley through to the Quebec border along the Bay of Chaleur. The riding spans Madawaska and most of Restigouche County, taking in the towns of Edmundston (population roughly 16,400), Campbellton, Dalhousie, and the village of Kedgwick, along with many smaller francophone communities. With a 2021 population of about 60,200, it is one of the province’s most francophone ridings—approximately 80 percent of residents speak French as their mother tongue—and its three-hour driving length from end to end reflects the scale of rural northern New Brunswick.

Candidates

Guillaume Deschênes-Thériault (Liberal) is a first-time MP who served as a municipal councillor in Kedgwick beginning in 2021 while working as an associate researcher at a consulting firm specializing in the Canadian Francophonie. He holds a master’s degree in Canadian politics from the University of Ottawa, where he was pursuing doctoral studies at the time of the election. He was acclaimed as the Liberal candidate.

Michel Morin (Conservative) brought extensive public-service credentials: seven years as a municipal councillor in Haut-Madawaska, 37 years as a reservist in the Canadian Armed Forces, and more than three decades as a teacher. He previously ran as the Conservative candidate in Madawaska Les Lacs–Edmundston during the 2024 provincial election.

Daisy Petersen (NDP) was born in Dalhousie and has worked in long-term care since 2007, completing her Practical Nurse program at NBCC Miramichi-Dalhousie in 2010. She serves as president of CUPE Local 1159 and continues to provide care to seniors at Villa Renaissance in Dalhousie. She previously ran for the NDP in Restigouche East in the 2024 provincial election.

Nancy Mercier (People’s Party) also stood as a candidate.

About the Riding

Madawaska—Restigouche’s economy has historically depended on forestry, pulp and paper, fishing, and mining. Edmundston developed as a mill town, and the forest sector remains the largest private employer in the region—in Madawaska and Restigouche counties, roughly one in every eleven workers is directly employed in forestry. Campbellton serves as a shipping and service hub along the Restigouche River, while Dalhousie, on the Bay of Chaleur, has struggled with the decline of its industrial base.

The riding’s cross-border geography shapes its character in distinctive ways. Edmundston sits directly across the Saint John River from Madawaska, Maine, and the two communities share deep economic and family ties. Campbellton, similarly, has close connections to Quebec’s Gaspé region.

In 2025, trade tensions loomed large. The forestry sector already faced softwood lumber countervailing duties averaging over 14 percent, and the prospect of an additional 25 percent tariff threatened severe consequences for sawmills and pulp operations across the riding. Youth out-migration continued to drain population from the region, and health-care staffing remained critically strained, with hospitals in both Campbellton and Edmundston struggling to recruit physicians and nurses. Energy costs during harsh northern winters and median incomes well below the national average compounded the burden on local households.