By KEVIN BERGER, Local Journalism Initiative
Incumbent Kelly Block was decisively re-elected to a fourth term as the MP for Carlton Trail-Eagle Creek in Monday’s election, though her victory was bittersweet as the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) lost to the Liberals for the fourth time in a decade.
As of midnight on April 28, Block had received a total of 36,034 votes to easily win the riding, which represented approximately 77.6 per cent of all votes cast in Monday’s election.
Liberal candidate Katelyn Zimmer came in second with 7,839 votes, or 16.9 per cent of all votes cast; meanwhile, NDP candidate Cheryl Loadman received 2,569 votes, or 5.5 per cent of the vote share.
Nationally, the Liberals were projected to earn a total of 167 seats in Parliament, which is five short of the 172 seats needed for a majority. The CPC were projected to finish with 145 seats – a gain of 26 seats from the 2021 election.
The Bloc Quebecois shrank from 32 seats to a projected 23, while the New Democratic Party were hit even harder this election, falling from 25 seats in 2021 to a projected seven. The Green Party also dropped from two to one seat.
Block, who was first elected as a federal MP in 2008 within the Saskatoon-Rosetown-Biggar riding, said she wanted to thank the voters for once again giving her the privilege of serving them as their Member of Parliament.
“I know that our Conservative team in Saskatchewan is prepared to go back to Ottawa, to continue to be a strong voice for the people we represent and continue fighting every day for what we believe,” she said.
Block acknowledged that the national results were not what she or other Conservatives had hoped for, though she pointed out that in Saskatchewan, her party won 13 out of 14 ridings.
“So I’m pleased by that. It’s not something we take for granted. I know that every one of my colleagues worked very hard to get the result that we did,” she said.
Looking to the days ahead, Block said she believes there will be some reflection on how the election turned out as they look to return to Ottawa.