Big changes in election map

Details

Published on Tuesday, May 29, 2018

submitted

The new election boundary map.

By Ken Waddell

Neepawa Banner & Press

The Manitoba Boundaries Commission issues a report every 10 years with recommendations for provincial election district boundaries. The population of the province is divided by 57 seats and each constituency’s boundaries are then adjusted to get as close as possible to that average

. The 2018 report says The Act requires the Commission to base its review on the Statistics Canada 2016 Census population for Manitoba. This total (1,278,365) is divided by the number of provincial electoral divisions in the province (57), establishing a quotient for each electoral division (approximately 22,427 people per electoral division).

Rivers moves into Sprucewoods constituency but is currently in Riding Mountain and is represented by Greg Nesbitt. Sprucewoods will stretch diagonally from Rivers to Glenboro and from Carberry to Souris and swallow up portions of the current Brandon constituencies.

Rapid City stays in Riding Mountain constituency and gains Hamiota. Riding Mountain constituency will now wrap itself three-quarters of the way around Riding Mountain National Park and will take in Grandview and Gilbert Plains. Dauphin and Swan River are being combined.

Agassiz constituency will add the Town of Minnedosa but loses Carberry to Sprucewoods and MacGregor to Portage. Agassiz will now include Ste. Rose and Crane River.

If a by-election should come along before the next election it will be contested on the current boundaries. The new boundaries will come into effect subject to public consultation and in time for the next general election.