Canadian Federal Election Results – 2021 Seats, Votes and Key Insights

The 2021 Canadian federal election took place on September 20, 2021, resulting in a Liberal minority government led by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Canadians across 338 ridings cast their votes in an election called midway through the pandemic recovery period, with results that closely mirrored the 2019 outcome.

The election saw the Liberals secure 160 seats in the House of Commons, falling short of the 170 seats required for a majority government. The Conservative Party finished as the Official Opposition with 119 seats, while the Bloc Québécois maintained their position with 32 seats, the NDP picked up one additional seat to reach 25, and the Greens retained two seats. Voter turnout reached approximately 62.5% nationally, marking a record low for a governing party.

Who Won the 2021 Canadian Federal Election?

What Were the Final Seat Counts by Party?

Liberal Performance

The Liberal Party secured 160 seats, representing 47.3% of the 338-seat House of Commons. This result represented a modest gain of three seats from the 2019 election, where the party had won 157 seats. Despite the numerical improvement, the Liberals recorded the lowest popular vote share ever achieved by a party forming government in Canada at 32.6%. The party received 5,556,629 votes nationally, an increase of just 0.5 percentage points from the previous election.

In Quebec, the Liberals managed to edge out the Bloc Québécois, securing 33.6% of the vote compared to the Bloc’s 32.1%. This regional performance proved crucial to the party’s overall seat count, though the result still fell well short of the 170 seats needed for a majority government. Justin Trudeau’s second consecutive minority victory prompted immediate questions about the timing and necessity of the snap election call.

Conservative Official Opposition

The Conservative Party under Erin O’Toole finished as the Official Opposition with 119 seats, down two from their 2019 total of 121. Despite the seat loss, the party actually increased its popular vote share by 0.6 percentage points to reach 33.7%, marking the second consecutive election where the Conservatives won the popular vote but fewer seats than the Liberals.

The Conservatives won decisively in Alberta, with candidate Shadow Rod Brierley winning Bow River with 69.8% of the vote. In Calgary Centre, the party secured 51.3% support. However, the party struggled to make gains in British Columbia and Ontario, where strategic voting and PPC splitting affected outcomes in several competitive ridings.

Third-Party Performance

The Bloc Québécois maintained their position as the fourth-largest party in Parliament, holding steady at 32 seats under Yves-François Blanchet. The party received 7.6% of the national popular vote and performed strongly in Quebec, though they fell just short of the Liberals in that province.

The NDP under Jagmeet Singh gained one seat to reach 25 total, with their popular vote increasing by 1.8 percentage points to 17.8%. The party held on to ridings like Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing in Ontario, where candidate Carol Hughes won with 40.2% of the vote.

Key Dates and Timeline of the Election

1. August 15, 2021 — Governor General Mary Simon dissolved Parliament at the request of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, officially launching the 44th federal election campaign.
2. September 2-16, 2021 — Advance polling days allowed eligible voters to cast ballots before election day at designated polling stations across Canada.
3. September 20, 2021 — Election day saw Canadians voting in all 338 federal ridings. Polls opened at 9:30 a.m. and closed at various times based on regional time zones, with initial results becoming available as polls closed in the West.
4. September 21-23, 2021 — Election results were officially certified by Elections Canada as mail-in and special ballots were counted over several days following election day.
5. October 2021 — The Liberal government was sworn in, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau forming his second consecutive minority government. Parliament was prorogued before resuming.
6. November 22, 2021 — The new Parliament opened, with the Speech from the Throne delivered by Governor General Mary Simon, outlining the government’s priorities for the minority mandate.
7. March 2022 — The Liberals and NDP announced a formal confidence-and-supply agreement, providing the minority government with parliamentary support in exchange for policy commitments on pharmacare and dental care.

Voter Turnout and Popular Vote Breakdown

National voter turnout reached approximately 62.5% of eligible voters, representing a record low for a governing party at the federal level. This figure reflects continued challenges in engaging voters amid the COVID-19 pandemic, though advance polling numbers indicated significant interest in the election outcome.

In Quebec, voter turnout stood at 62.4%, with 4,051,633 of 6,495,755 registered voters participating. The province saw particularly close competition between the Liberals and Bloc Québécois, with the Liberals edging ahead by 1.5 percentage points in the popular vote.

The gap between the national popular vote and seat outcomes continued a notable trend in Canadian federal politics. While the Conservatives led with 33.7% of votes nationally, the electoral system translated their support into only 119 seats compared to the Liberals’ 160 seats from 32.6% of the vote.

Understanding the Results: What Is Known and What Remains Uncertain

Context: Why the Election Results Matter

The 2021 election results underscored fundamental characteristics of Canada’s first-past-the-post electoral system. The continued divergence between popular vote and seat counts highlighted ongoing debates about electoral reform, a conversation that has surfaced repeatedly in Canadian political discourse without resulting in substantive changes to the voting system.

The formation of Trudeau’s second consecutive minority government established a parliamentary dynamic where the governing Liberals required support from at least one opposition party to survive confidence votes. The March 2022 agreement with the NDP provided this stability in exchange for policy concessions, effectively creating a coalition-style arrangement without formal cabinet inclusion.

For the Conservatives, the results prompted immediate soul-searching about strategy and leadership. Erin O’Toole’s position became untenable following the seat loss, and he resigned as party leader in December 2021. The challenge for the party involved balancing its diverse regional bases while addressing the structural disadvantages presented by vote distribution under the current electoral system.

What Comes Next: The Road Ahead

Under Canada’s fixed-date election law, the next federal election was scheduled for October 20, 2025, though minority governments can be dissolved earlier through a confidence vote or royal recommendation. The Liberal minority operated under ongoing uncertainty about the precise timing of the subsequent election, requiring constant attention to parliamentary support calculations.

The agreement between the Liberals and NDP, which expired in 2024, demonstrated both the possibilities and limitations of minority governance. Policy achievements in areas like dental care and pharmacare came at the cost of parliamentary flexibility, while the arrangement provided the NDP with influence disproportionate to their seat count.

Summary

The 2021 Canadian federal election produced a Liberal minority government with 160 of 338 seats, continuing the parliamentary dynamics established in 2019. Justin Trudeau’s government faced immediate questions about the necessity of the election call, given results nearly identical to the previous outcome. The Conservatives’ second consecutive popular vote victory without seat parity reinforced structural debates about electoral fairness, while the PPC’s dramatic vote increase without seat gains illustrated the punishing nature of first-past-the-post systems for smaller parties. Full riding-level data and interactive maps are available through official electoral resources. For those interested in broader Canadian infrastructure and travel considerations, the Ferry from Vancouver to Victoria – Times, Bookings and Travel Tips provides relevant background on inter-provincial connectivity.

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