Federal byelection called for March 4 in vacant riding of Durham 

A federal byelection will be held in the Conservative stronghold of Durham, Ont. on March 4 to fill the seat left vacant by Erin O’Toole last spring. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed the date in a post on X on Sunday.

The former Conservative leader served as official Opposition leader from August 2020 until February 2022 and was first elected as a member of Parliament in 2012. 

Jamil Jivani, a lawyer and commentator, is running for the Conservatives to replace O’Toole. 

Meanwhile, the Liberals have nominated Robert Rock, a councillor in Scugog, Ont.

Rock said he decided to run for the Liberals because the Conservative Party no longer speaks to his values, and he believes they will cut services and bring American-style politics to Canada if they are elected.

“While Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives are pushing cuts to vital services that support the middle class and importing far-right American politics here to Canada, I will work to deliver a strong economy and better future for the families here in Durham,” Rock said in a statement back on Jan. 4.

A Conservative Party spokesperson said while Rock had purchased a party membership last April after Pierre Poilievre became leader, he failed to meet the requirements to run under its banner. They did not specify what criteria Rock had not met.

The NDP has nominated Chris Borgia, president of the Durham Region Labour Council. 

There are two other vacant seats in the House of Commons, Toronto-St. Paul following the retirement of former Liberal cabinet member Carolyn Bennett and the Montreal riding of LaSalle-Émard-Verdun, which is vacant following the retirement of David Lametti. No dates have been been announced for those byelections.