The Green Party of Canada is returning the two seats it had at the dissolution of the last parliament and adding a third seat, this time in Atlantic Canada.
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, who won her B.C. riding in Saanich-Gulf Islands, also watched Jenica Atwin win her riding in Fredericton.
While only a small tripling of the party’s overall seat count, May said three seats can still get a lot done in Ottawa.
“We know we can work hard with a sense of duty and deep ethics we can make a really significant contribution in a minority parliament — and we will,” May echoed to her B.C. crowd.
Prior to Monday, The Green Party leader said she was willing to work with all parties in the event of a minority situation.
A strong showing in televised debates midway through the campaign wasn’t enough for NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, who’s NDP lost the most ground Monday night among parties.
Despite the setback, Singh still retained his seat and tried to assure supporters that an NDP vote was not a wasted one.
“I want to talk to the many Canadians that rejected the call to vote out of fear and thank them for voting for hope,” Singh told his gallery of supporters.
The NDP lost 15 seats, dropping to 25 overall, with many voters in Quebec pulling their support and plugging it back into the Bloc Quebecois, which won 22 seats more than in 2015, surging to 32 in the new government.
While the NDP’s large loss on election night came in the form of crumbling Quebec support, People’s Party Leader Maxime Bernier lost his own seat in Quebec, the only seat the party had to his former Conservatives, in what was seen as a devastating loss for the PPC leader.
Bernier was defeated by Conservative Richard Lehoux but used his speaking opportunity Monday night to underline the rapid growth of his party despite being shutout at the polls.
“We will be stronger the next time. We will continue to fight for freedom, responsibility, fairness and respect. It’s only the beginning for the Peoples Party,” Bernier said Monday speaking to his supporters.
“Hundreds of thousands of Canadians supported the PPC today,” Bernier added. We are the fastest growing political party in Canadian history. We will continue to grow in the coming months and years.”
