Scarborough Southwest Federal Byelection 2026: Eight candidates registered to run in race to become riding’s new MP
A total of eight candidates will be running to be the new Member of Parliament (MP) for Scarborough Southwest in the federal byelection now taking place in the riding.
The deadline for candidates to register to run was the afternoon of Monday, March 23.
The federal byelection in Scarborough Southwest will take place on Monday, April 13.
Here are the candidates running for the seat:
Doly Begum – Liberal Party.
Diana Filipova – Conservative Party.
April Franciso – Independent.
Peter Koubakis – People’s Party of Canada.
Pooja Malhotra – Green Party.
Lyall Sanders – Centrist Party.
Fatima Shaban – New Democratic Party.
David Vedova – Christian Heritage Party.
The byelection in Scarborough Southwest had to be called after sitting Liberal MP Bill Blair stepped down in February after being named Canada’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom. Also holding byelections on April 13 will be the federal ridings of University-Rosedale in Toronto and Terrebonne in Quebec.
Blair’s stepping down as the Scarborough Southwest MP sparked a number of moves in the riding’s political landscape, with former Ontario NDP Deputy Leader Scarborough Southwest MPP Doly Begum announcing the next day that she would be leaving the NDP and running for the Liberals to fill Blair’s position.
According to Elections Canada, voters in the Scarbrough Southwest federal byelection can cast their ballots on election day (April 13) or vote in advance polls from April 3 to April 6 at their assigned local polling station. Those who wish to cast their vote by mail must apply to do so by April 7.
For more information on voting in the Scarborough Southwest federal byelection, please go online to https://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=ele&dir=2026/35096&document=index&lang=e
The Scarborough Southwest Elections Canada Office for this federal byelection is located at 2685 Kingston Rd., at the south side of the building. The office can be contacted by phone by calling 1-866-281-5089.
