Montreal

Spotlight on Montreal ridings: Mount Royal

The incumbent-less longtime Liberal stronghold will be the stage of the battle of the municipal mayors this federal election as the Conservative former mayor of Côte Saint-Luc takes on the Liberal current mayor.

Conservatives putting full court press on one-time Liberal lockup

(CBC)

The home riding of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Mount Royal has long been a Liberal stronghold.

But the opening created by the departure of longtime MP Irwin Cotler may just be large enough for contenders to squeeze through.

It is seen as a vulnerable enough target that Conservative Leader Stephen Harper made his first official campaign stop there shortly after the election was called.

Robert Libman, a well-known English-language rights activist and former MNA, won the conservative nomination in April. He'll try and take the riding from the hands of the Liberal's new candidate, who is also no stranger to residents of the riding.

Robert Libman, former Côte Saint-Luc mayor (left), and Anthony Housefather, current mayor, are each running for the seat in Mount Royal in the 2015 federal election. (CBC)

Anthony Housefather, the current mayor of Côte Saint-Luc, has been tasked with keeping the riding red.

The NDP is putting its faith in candidate Mario Jacinto Rimbao, a fleet operator and a longtime basketball coach and volunteer in the riding's substantial Filipino community.

Riding History

  • Established in 1924.
  • Liberal since 1940.
  • One per cent of the riding was merged into Outremont in 1996, but the boundaries have remained the same since.

Riding snapshot

Population: 101,260 (2011 Census)

Mother tongue: English (33 per cent), French (23.8 per cent), non-official languages (43.2 per cent, largest linguistic groups are Filipino, Arabic, Russian, Romanian and Spanish)

Average household income: $118,558 (2011 National Household Survey)

Results last election

Liberal: 16,151
Conservative: 13,891
NDP: 6,963
Bloc Québécois: 1,136
Green Party: 683
Marxist-Leninist: 109
Independent: 74

Candidates 2015