Conservative says win in Miramichi-Grand Lake 'bittersweet' after national loss

While most of New Brunswick's 10 ridings were settled relatively early on election night, one stood out: Miramichi-Grand Lake.

Both Conservative Mike Dawson and Liberal Lisa Harris took the lead at different points during a long night of vote-counting. Harris conceded the race early Tuesday, but even this didn't bring sheer elation to the victor.

Dawson was happy about his win — he got 18,431 votes to Harris's 18,037 — but the failure of the Conservatives to win nationally hurt.

"It's bittersweet," Dawson, a Progressive Conservative MLA since 2022, said in an interview Tuesday.. "We were expecting better results federally across the country.

"But provincially and locally it turned out well, but federally wasn't what we were expecting."

Dawson's win ensured New Brunswick's electoral map would stay exactly as it was the last time, with six Liberals and four Conservatives winning election.

The riding is large and rural, including downtown Miramichi down to Grand Lake as well as part of the Acadian Peninsula and parts of Kent County. 

Canada's dispute with U.S. President Donald Trump over trade was a central issue in the federal election and got credit for helping the Liberals win, but Dawson said he didn't hear much about Trump while out knocking on doors.

"A lot of the stuff we heard, or most of the stuff we heard, was all about cost of living."

WATCH | Mike Dawson reflects on local victory alongside national disappointment:

Despite the national loss, Dawson said, his own focus is the same.

"I'm still going to do the same thing I was doing, whether we were in power or not power. So it doesn't change much."

Dawson jumped into the race after Jake Stewart, who'd held the seat for the Conservatives in the last Parliament, decided not to reoffer. There had been resignations from Stewart's office and speculation he wouldn't be able to win.

Dawson said he and Stewart "have always been fairly close," but there wasn't much mention of the former MP when speaking with voters.  

"People were fixated on what's happening federally and with the local issues an,d that was most of the concerns at the door."

Some hope Dawson focuses on local issues

Paddy Vautour of Miramichi said he was glad the Conservatives won the riding, "but I thought it would go a lot better overall."

Vautour said he supported Dawson, who he said didn't knock on his door this election.

"He didn't have to," Autour said. "I'm a purebread Conservative."

He said seniors' pensions were the biggest election issue for him, and it was disappointing the election emphasis was so heavy on Trump. 

"It's not enough to live on, everything's going up. It's not easy to live on 700-some dollars a month, you know?"

Maggie Clark, 18, also lives in Miramichi, and said she would have liked to see the Conservatives win the country as well. 

"I wasn't sure who was going to win because it was so tight," she said.

But with Dawson winning, she said she hopes for more focus on the community.

"I'm hoping that we get, like, just more focus on community and maybe the drugs here, focus on that a bit more, maybe lower the drug crime rates and stuff like that."

Different reactions in Minto

At the other end of the riding, in Minto, reaction from voters who spoke with CBC News was more mixed. 

Kevin Murphy, a Liberal voter, said he didn't like former prime minister Justin Trudeau, but with Mark Carney as prime minister, "I think I feel more comfortable going forward for the next four years."

Sebastien Riley, a first-time voter who just turned 18, said affordability was top of mind, and he hoped for a Conservative government. 

"I mean, we're graduating in about a month and a half now. So we're kind of thinking about our future and trying to figure out if we're going to be able to afford anywhere to live other than our parent's basement."

Franco Morocco said he was disappointed that third parties took such a hit this election. 

"It's rather sad that it's always that way," he said. "We're going to eventually end up probably like the U.S., with a two-party system, and it just never changes. 

"I wish there was a way for people to, you know, like, get together and say, like, we need some real change in this country."