Sarah Rennie – LJI Reporter
During a brief meeting to discuss the fall session in parliament, Salaberry-Suroît MP Claude DeBellefeuille confirmed that changes to the name and boundaries of her riding had quietly been formalized by the Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission for Quebec in June.
The new electoral map became official in September when it was proclaimed by the Chief Electoral Officer. The new ridings will be used during the next general federal election, so long as it is called after April 22.
At that time, the Salaberry-Suroît riding will become known as Beauharnois-Salaberry-Soulanges-Huntingdon, and the current Chateauguay-Lacolle riding will be known as Chateauguay-Les Jardins-de-Napierville.
Significant changes to the boundaries of the two ridings were also formalized as a result of a process started by the publication of the Commission’s proposal on July 29, 2022. Public hearings took place in September and October of that year, before a report was tabled in February 2023. MPs were able to voice any objections to the proposed changes before the representation order was established on September 22.
The Beauharnois-Salaberry-Soulanges-Huntingdon riding will be the second most populous riding in the province after the new Vaudreuil riding. It spans across sections of the MRC de Vaudreuil-Soulanges, including the Town of Coteau-du-Lac as well as the municipalities of Les Cèdres, Les Coteaux, Rivière-Beaudette, Saint-Clet, Saint-Polycarpe, Saint-Télesphore, Saint-Zotique, Sainte-Justine-de-Newton, Sainte-Marthe, Très-Saint-Rédempteur, and the Village of Pointe-des-Cascades.
The riding includes all the municipalities of the MRC de Beauharnois-Salaberry except for Saint-Urbain-Premier and Sainte-Martine. The new boundaries split the MRC du Haut-Saint-Laurent in two, while including the Town of Huntingdon as well as the municipalities of Elgin, Hinchinbrooke, Ormstown, Saint-Anicet, Sainte-Barbe, and the township municipalities of Dundee and Godmanchester. The riding also includes Akwesasne.
DeBellefeuille voiced her objection to the changes, though her opposition was mainly over the proposed name of the riding, which was Salaberry-Suroît-Soulanges. She notes it was understood that the Commission had little choice given the sprawling population growth in Vaudreuil but to balance this within the region.
The Chateauguay-Les Jardins-de-Napierville riding will include all the municipalities in the MRC des Jardins-de-Napierville, as well as the municipalities of Saint-Urbain-Premier and Sainte-Martine from the neighbouring MRC de Beauharnois-Salaberry. The boundaries reach into the MRC de Roussillon to include the towns of Chateauguay, Léry, Mercier, and the parish municipality of Saint-Isidore. Finally, the riding gains the municipalities of Franklin, Howick, and Saint-Chrysostome, as well as the township municipality of Très-Saint-Sacrement and the township.
More information on the redistribution of federal electoral districts is available on the Elections Canada website at elections.ca.