Federal election: Liberal tide, decimated NDP mark changed Quebec landscape
Liberals' 40 seats represent Quebec best result for party since 1980
Quebecers are waking up to a dramatically redrawn electoral map, with the Liberals making surprise gains in the province as Justin Trudeau's party marched to a big majority victory.
- Justin Trudeau pledges 'real change' as Liberals leap ahead to majority government
- Liberals take West Island in red tide
- Conservatives make gains in Quebec City region
- Justin Trudeau wins Papineau riding in a landslide
Speaking at Montreal's Queen Elizabeth hotel, Trudeau told a crowd of supporters that Canadians had sent a message they want "real change."
Here's what happened and what it means for the province.
Seat breakdown for Quebec
- Liberals: 40 (compared with seven last time)
- NDP: 16 (compared with 59 last time)
- Conservatives: 12 (compared with five last time)
- Bloc Québécois: 10 (compared with four last time)
Riding maps were redrawn for this election, and Quebec had three new seats up for grabs, for a total of 78.
Red tide
The Liberals' 40 seats represent the best result for the party in the province since 1980, when Pierre Elliott Trudeau's Liberals won 74 of 75 seats.
It appears the party has finally overcome the voters' backlash from the sponsorship scandal, which has haunted the party in Quebec since it surfaced ahead of the 2006 federal election campaign.
Trudeau won his own seat, the north end Montreal riding of Papineau, in a landslide.
The Liberals also won back seats from the NDP in several Montreal ridings that have traditionally voted red, including two West Island ridings and Honoré-Mercier in the northeast.
More say in Ottawa?
Last night was the first time since Brian Mulroney's Progressive Conservatives victory in 1988 that a majority of Quebec seats went to the party that formed government.
In the years since, the Bloc has been the leading voice for the province in Ottawa — until the NDP wave of 2011.
In his victory speech, Trudeau addressed the crowd in French, saying Quebecers had made the decision to re-engage with Canada by voting Liberal.
"We have chosen to trust one another and to invest in our future," Trudeau said.
The outcome represents a major departure for the province.
Orange crushed
NDP Leader Tom Mulcair was able to hold on to his own seat in the Montreal riding of Outremont, but the NDP only won 16 seats in the province overall.
The result is a major disappointment for the party. In 2011 they won 59 seats in Quebec and nearly obliterated the Bloc Québécois.
Mulcair put on a brave face in his concession speech, telling supporters his party has a strong future in the province.
"Tonight, we've demonstrated that in Quebec, NDP roots continue to develop and going forward the NPD will always be, for Quebecers, a real choice," he said.
Conservatives make gains (in Quebec)
Despite major losses nationally (and Stephen Harper stepping down as leader), the Conservatives were able to make some inroads in Quebec.
The party won 12 seats — up from a total of five in the last election.
The Conservatives had also made a push to gain a presence on the island of Montreal, with Stephen Harper opening his campaign in the traditional Liberal stronghold of Mount Royal. But they were unable to win the riding, with Anthony Housefather taking the seat for the Liberals.