Hull—Aylmer (Quebec)

Today we're in Hull—Aylmer!

Hull—Aylmer has existed as a riding since 1917. The population of the riding was 105,419 in 2016. The riding is in the city of Gatineau and contains the former cities of Hull, Aylmer, as well as the District de Deschenes. In 2002, the Parti Quebecois government merged the cities of Gatineau, Hull, Aylmer, Buckingham, and Masson-Angers. 

Politically, this seat, like most of Ottawa-Gatineau, is reliably Liberal. Since it's inception, it has only elected Liberals all but once. In 2011, longtime NDP member Nycole Turmel defeated 12 year incumbent Marcel Proulx. The only other time the seat hasn't been in Liberal hands is when Gilles Rocheleau crossed the floor to the newly created Bloc Quebecois. The seat is currently held by Liberal MP Greg Fergus.

Greg Fergus is one of eight Black MP's in Canada, six Liberals, one NDP, and one Conservative. The first Black Canadian elected to the House of Commons was Lincoln Alexander of Hamilton West, serving in Joe Clark's short-lived cabinet. Today, there are two Black cabinet ministers (Marci Ien and Ahmed Hussen), one Black parliamentary secretary (Greg Fergus), and a former (and presumptively future) Conservative leadership candidate (Leslyn Lewis). In 2019, this seat was 74/78 in Quebec and 293/338 in Canada by margin.

The shape is fine, but the riding does split the community of Le Plateau in half. I like the name, the names of Hull and Aylmer are still used, granted the amalgamation only happened twenty years ago. As for individuality, it will always surprise me how big the orange wave was, especially with a seat in Ottawa-Gatineau which usually stays solidly Liberal.

Tomorrow we're back in Toronto with Humber River—Black Creek!