

Yesterday, Canadians made their voices heard in the polls. With everything counted, the night ended with Justin Trudeau and the Liberals winning power again, but this time with a minority government.
Meanwhile, winning the popular vote and claiming all Alberta ridings but one, Scheer and the Conservatives maintain that they will be back next election to claim power.
See also: Liberals form minority government after 43rd Canadian federal elections
With Trudeau now heading a minority government, he will need the support of another party to pass bills. This is because 170 votes are needed to pass a bill and the Liberals only managed to secure 157 seats.
Elizabeth May and the Green Party did not experience the voting surge they may have initially expected, but they did see some moderate gains, tripling their seat count from 2015 and doubling their vote count from last election. May also won her riding of Saanich-Gulf Islands for the third election in a row.
The NDP party, led by Jagmeet Singh, came up shorter than previously expected. In the weeks leading up to the election, Singh was polling at an increased approval rating of 18%. Despite Singh winning his riding of Burnaby South, the NDPs ended the evening with a mere 24 seats in the House.
See also:
- City councillor Laurel Collins wins Victoria riding for NDP
- Green Party leader Elizabeth May wins seat in Saanich-Gulf Islands
- People’s Party of Canada leader Maxime Bernier loses seat in Quebec
As the dust settled on the 43rd Canadian Federal Election, Victoria Buzz headed to social media to gauge the reactions of Canadians.
Some voters remained proud of their chosen parties, despite lack of power.
Well done @DavidMerner for taking the #GreenParty up a notch in Esquimalt-Saanich-Sooke with a strong second place and being an important part of green vote growth right across the country. Under #ProportionalRepresentation we would have 25 seats – that's how good it was!
— MBinColwood (@MBinColwood) October 22, 2019
Some lamented what they felt was a lack of acknowledgement on Climate Change
I was led to believe that BC was the most environmentally conscious province in Cda. Last nights result prove that to be incorrect. The majority of BCrs voted #cpc/#ndp, both whom support fossil fuel expansion and environmental and human sacrifice zones in B.C.
— albertarabbit 🌎 (@albertarabbit) October 22, 2019
Others celebrated a progressive leader remaining in power.
#ScheerlessTuesday So glad that Canadians have shown that extremism, hate, and dishonesty have no place in our politics.
— Dave’s not here (@13Wendigos) October 22, 2019
So delighted to see 🇨🇦Canada choose, by an overwhelming majority, to set a progressive agenda for itself, kicking to the curb all that Scheer, Trumpist, Harperite ideology of selfishness and regression.#cdnpoli #ChooseForward
— David Hamer (@DavidHamer_1951) October 22, 2019
And Alberta immediately wanted to jump ship and separate from the rest of Canada (#wexit), leading to responses like these:
I can't believe Alberta's reaction after four years of anger is now to be angrier. That didn't work the last time, should we maybe not try a different plan? #elxn43
— Mike Morrison 🏳️🌈 (@mikesbloggity) October 22, 2019
Dear conservative western Canadians:
I understand you’re upset by the #elxn43 results. I even understand your rage.
However, #wexit is *precisely* why the rest of Canada mocks us. First, the name is silly & derivative. Second, it won’t happen.
Thanks,
Everyone Else. #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/XnohkSRKWJ
— Jay Guevara (née Gamble) (@DrJayDrNo) October 22, 2019
While some expressed anger over Trudeau’s lack of promised electoral reform.
Electoral reform immediately.
That needs to be the takeaway from #elxn43.
The end must come for "strategic voting" and for entirely unrepresentative results. #cdnpoli
— Arün Smith (@arun_smith) October 22, 2019
Others do not find Trudeau to be a progressive leader at all, and instead are left feeling disappointed by last night’s results.
We really are a country who doesnt care about a prime minister who wears Blackface, bailed out a private pipeline for 4.5 billion dollars, lied about electoral reform, and wanted to keep hush on massive SNC corruption scandal. What even ?!? #cdnpoli #ElectionsCanada #elxn2019
— Harsha Walia (@HarshaWalia) October 22, 2019
One of the more humorous anecdotes on Twitter came from user @davidpleonard, who pointed out that two Maxime Berniers ran in the riding of Beauce, Quebec.
Shout-out to the (so far) 68 people who've voted for the Rhino party's OTHER Maxime Bernier in Beauce. Fantastic stuff. #elxn43 pic.twitter.com/BHOEi1DSts
— David (P) Leonard (@davidpleonard) October 22, 2019
Some didn’t know HOW to feel.
achieving the best possible outcome never felt so shitty. #elxn43
— Derrick O'Keefe 🌹🌱 (@derrickokeefe) October 22, 2019
I don’t want to go all political scientist on you folks, but this election was, as we say in the biz, fucked up. #elxn43
— David Pumpkin Spice Moscrop ☕️🎃 (@David_Moscrop) October 22, 2019
Some used memes to process the events of the night.
#wexit #WEXITALBERTA #quebexit #westernseparation #BlocQuebecois #elxn43 pic.twitter.com/mo41toXPnB
— Eric Pharand (@sepiriz101) October 22, 2019
Phew. #elxn43 pic.twitter.com/D1tjc2vuym
— Amanda Jette Knox (@MavenOfMayhem) October 22, 2019
Canadian Satire magazine, The Beaverton, poked fun at Andrew Scheer for reports of him lying about being an accredited insurance broker.
Scheer: Now that the campaign is over, I would like to talk to you about life insurance #cdnpoli #elxn43
— The Beaverton (@TheBeaverton) October 22, 2019
In what was perhaps surprising to some, Donald Trump reacted positively to Trudeau reclaiming power once again.
Congratulations to @JustinTrudeau on a wonderful and hard fought victory. Canada is well served. I look forward to working with you toward the betterment of both of our countries!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 22, 2019
Despite not publicly endorsing Trudeau, Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, also sent him well wishes and expressed the desire to work alongside Canada in future endeavours.
Congratulations @JustinTrudeau!
India and Canada are connected by shared values and a strong commitment to democracy as well as plurality.
Looking forward to working together to further strengthen bilateral relations. pic.twitter.com/8zYvyuixCw
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 22, 2019
In the end, it seems that Canadians are less than surprised with these results. After all, power has been shifting back and forth between Conservatives to Liberals for the past 150 years.
While there may not have been a momentous shift in power or stance, this remains an important moment in Canadian politics.
Previously, the average amount of time for a minority government to last is one year. The Liberals will have to regain trust and momentum if they want to survive in power any longer than that.