Madawaska-Restigouche elects Liberal René Arseneault
CBC News | Posted: October 20, 2015 12:33 AM | Last Updated: October 20, 2015
Conservative cabinet minister Bernard Valcourt defeated
Madawaska-Restigouche has elected Liberal René Arseneault in Monday night's federal election, sending Conservative cabinet minister Bernard Valcourt to defeat.
Valcourt was the incumbent heading into Monday's election and most recently served in Stephen Harper's cabinet as the minister of aboriginal affairs.
Arseneault was declared elected with 56.7 per cent of the vote with 143 of 173 polls reporting in the northwestern riding.
NDP candidate Rosaire L'Italien stood in second place with 25.7 per cent support, while Valcourt's support plummeted to 15.8 per cent in the early returns.
Green Party candidate François Aubin had 1.9 per cent support.
Valcourt told reporters on Monday that he was not surprised by the result considering the recent polls.
"After 10 years in government, it's not surprising voters would make that choice," he said.
"I can't perform an autopsy of the campaign at this point."
Valcourt won the riding in 2011. He had previously held the riding from 1984 to 1999, and would not rule out a political comeback in the future.
"We'll have time to reflect on what the future will bring," he said.
The large riding spans from the province's borders with Quebec and Maine to the northern communities of Campbellton and Dalhousie.