Laval--Les Îles

Laval--Les Îles covers the western portion of Île-Jésus in the City of Laval, taking in the neighbourhoods of Chomedey (western section), Sainte-Dorothée, Laval-Ouest, Laval-sur-le-Lac, Îles-Laval, and the western part of Fabreville. With a population of approximately 112,000, the riding is one of the most ethnically and religiously diverse in Quebec. Roughly 18 percent of residents identify as Christian Orthodox and nearly 12 percent are of Greek ethnic origin -- both the highest such proportions in Canada -- alongside significant Lebanese, North African, Haitian, Italian, and Armenian communities.

Candidates

Fayçal El-Khoury (Liberal) -- Born in 1955 in Lebanon, El-Khoury immigrated to Canada in 1976 and earned a civil engineering degree from Concordia University. He established his own construction company shortly after graduation and later worked as a business consultant specializing in Canadian-Middle Eastern commercial relations. First elected in 2015, he sought a fourth consecutive term and has built a reputation for community engagement in the riding's diverse ethnic communities.

Konstantinos Merakos (Conservative) -- A lawyer and graduate of McGill University and the London School of Economics, Merakos holds law degrees from the Université de Montréal and the University of Ottawa. He has worked in human rights, youth protection, veterans' affairs, and constitutional law, and previously served as a legislative assistant in the Parliament of Canada. He campaigned heavily on rising crime, including car thefts, break-ins, and extortions affecting Laval residents.

Catherine Dansereau-Redhead (Bloc Québécois) -- A primary-school teacher with eleven years of experience in a multicultural school environment, Dansereau-Redhead has focused her career on defending and promoting the French language. She ran on a platform combining education reform, environmental protection, and Quebec sovereignty.

Étienne Loiselle-Schiettekatte (NDP) -- Loiselle-Schiettekatte represented the NDP in the riding, campaigning on the party's platform of pharmacare, workers' rights, and affordable housing in Laval's suburban communities.

About the Riding

Laval--Les Îles is a microcosm of the diversity that characterizes suburban Montreal. Chomedey, the riding's most populous neighbourhood, has been Laval's most multicultural district since the 1960s. The area is home to Greek Orthodox churches, mosques, synagogues, and community centres serving dozens of cultural groups. Among Laval's districts, Chomedey has the highest proportion of English speakers, at roughly 39 percent, making language politics a more nuanced issue here than in predominantly francophone ridings.

The local economy is driven by retail, services, and a cluster of manufacturing and logistics operations that take advantage of Laval's location between Montreal and the northern suburbs. Sainte-Dorothée features residential developments and commercial zones, while Laval-sur-le-Lac is an exclusive waterfront enclave.

In 2025, the campaign was shaped by public-safety concerns -- rising rates of car theft, home invasions, and arson-related extortions across Laval generated widespread anxiety -- as well as housing affordability in a market where Laval prices have surged alongside Montreal's. Immigration policy and integration services resonated strongly in a riding where roughly one-quarter of residents were born outside Canada. The impact of US trade tensions on Laval's manufacturing employers and the adequacy of federal transfers for public transit and healthcare also featured prominently. El-Khoury's deep roots in the riding's immigrant communities gave him a significant organizational advantage.