The comeback kids: some once-defeated MPs are making their return to Ottawa

For eight candidates who were successful in Monday's election, going to Parliament Hill will be like coming home.

After suffering defeats in past elections (or opting to take time away from federal politics), they staged successful comebacks in the 2019 vote.

Life as an MP means working long hours, spending a lot of time away from family and juggling multiple demands and pressures. But the excitement and rewards of the job remain a draw for those who know what it's like to win — even after they lose.

Rob Moore served as the Conservative MP for New Brunswick's Fundy Royal riding from 2004 to 2015. After losing to Alaina Lockhart in last election's Liberal sweep of Atlantic Canada, he won the seat back on Oct. 21.

Moore said his four-year stint outside the Ottawa bubble gave him priceless extra time with his family — and new insights into what's really important to his constituents.

"It does gives you a perspective check on the things that matter. Some of the things you think are making a difference in Ottawa might not be having the same impact back home as some other things," he said.

"So having time to observe from the outside — having known how things work in Ottawa, then seeing how that actually translates to the riding — has been a very valuable perspective for me."

Moore's time-out allowed him to enjoy things other parents take for granted: driving the kids to early hockey practice, tucking them into bed at night. He said his transition back to the topsy-turvy of political life will be easier than it is for the rookies because he knows what the job entails.

'Of course I miss the job'

"For the new MPs, it's not an easy transition when you go from a more normal lifestyle to one where you're away three weeks out of four some months," he said. "For those of us who are returning, we know a little bit more on what to expect."

Moore said the decision to run again was not "made in haste" but after careful reflection, and after a lot of conversations with family and with people living in the riding.

Long-time NDP MP Jack Harris also lost his St. John's East, Nfld. seat in the Liberal sweep of 2015.

"People have asked me, 'Did you miss the job?' and I say, 'Of course I miss the job,'" he said. "It was exciting, important, stimulating and the issues were ones that were important to Newfoundland and Labrador ... but also of national interest.

"I felt I had a role to play and not having that is something you miss."

Harris said his defeat came as a huge "surprise" to many and he received a lot of encouragement to run again.

While losing left him with more time to spend with family, it also left a void.

"It's not as if you planned your retirement and decided how you're going to do it and when," he said. "So your identity is obviously affected by that, because you've got to adjust to not being the person that you were the day before."

Conservative John Williamson took back his old New Brunswick Southwest seat from Liberal Karen Ludwig, winning almost twice as many votes as his opponent.

He said made the decision to run again after seeing the Liberal brand erode in the region, due to what he saw as a growing sense the party in power was taking the region for granted.

The 'joy and thrill'

Because Williamson had only served one term before his defeat, his network was still active and he was able to ease back into private sector work and get back on his feet relatively quickly.

He said he still missed working with his rural constituents at home, though — not to mention the "roar" of the Commons in full argument mode.

"You'd walk into the Commons on a busy day and immediately you'd be immersed in the debate and the discussions taking place in that chamber," he said. "There is a joy and a thrill in the job."

Still, Williamson said he saw the job of an MP as a basically a job like others, with advantages and disadvantages. Losing it was not a blow to his sense of self.

Just another unemployed Canadian

"I always approached the House of Commons as my workplace. Like a lot of other Canadians that have dealt with it suddenly, there's a change when you find yourselves out of work. And four years ago I was in that category as well," he said.

"But I like to think I was the same person before as after, and I will be tomorrow as well."

Other ex-MPs returning to the Commons include:

• Kerry-Lynne Findlay, a former Conservative cabinet minister who was first elected in 2011. She knocked out Liberal incumbent Gordon Hogg in the South Surrey-White Rock riding in B.C.
• Tim Uppal, defeated by Amarjeet Sohi in 2015. He brought the Edmonton Mill Woods riding back to the Conservatives this election.
• Kyle Seeback, who held a Brampton riding for the Conservatives in 2011 but lost it in the 2015 election. He will return to Ottawa as the MP for Dufferin-Caledon, Ont.
• Claude DeBellefeuille, who served as a BQ MP from 2006 until 2011, when she was defeated in the NDP's so-called "orange wave". She made another unsuccessful bid for re-election in 2015 for the Salaberry-Suroît riding before retaking the riding earlier this month.
• Stéphane Bergeron, returning to the federal scene as the BQ MP for Montarville, Que. After serving as a Bloc Quebecois MP from 1993 to 2005, he turned to provincial politics for the Parti Québécois from 2005 to 2018.