Parties name candidates for Beaches-East York federal byelection
At least five candidates will be running to be the new MP for Beaches-East York in this month’s federal byelection.
Voting day has been set for Monday, Aug. 31, with advance polls taking place on Friday, Aug. 21; Saturday, Aug. 22; Sunday, Aug. 23; and Monday, Aug. 24.
As of 1 p.m. on Aug. 4, Liberal candidate Tanveer Shahnawaz and Canadian Future Party candidate Cameron Thomas had officially registered with Elections Canada to run in the Beaches-East York byelection.
However, the Conservative Party, the Green Party and the NDP have all issued news releases announcing their Beaches-East York candidates.
Running for the NDP will be Shannon Devine.
Running for the People’s Party of Canada will be Michel Lachance.
Running for the Green Party will be Bruce Livesey.
Running for the Conservative Party will be Jim Sybros.
The federal seat in Beaches-East York became vacant after Liberal MP Nathaniel Erskine-Smith officially stepped down from the position on July 7.
Shahnawaz was selected as the Liberal candidate at a nomination meeting on July 18. He served as a key staffer in Erskine-Smith’s office prior to being selected as the candidate. He grew up in the Crescent Town neighbourhood of Beaches-East York, and has also served in roles as MP constituency office manager and co-chair of the Taylor-Massey & Oakridge Community Response Team.
Thomas, candidate for the Canadian Future Party, has lived in Beaches-East York for 17 years. He is a communications strategist with more than two decades experience, and has served on the board of Margaret’s Housing and Community Services and is the Chief of Staff and Press Secretary for the Canadian Future Party.
The NDP’s Devine will be known to Beaches-East York voters as she also ran for the party in the April 2025 federal election. She is a longtime labour and social justice leader. Devine has served as the Communications Director for the Canadian Auto Workers union (CAW) and later Unifor, Executive Director of the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL), Head of the United Steelworkers’ national Communications and Political Action Department, and Executive Director of the Toronto and York Region Labour Council.
Green Party candidate Livesey is a former TTC bus driver with extensive knowledge of the Beaches-East York and East Toronto area. Prior to working for the TTC, Livesey spent more than 40 years working as an award-winning investigative reporter, television and radio producer, newspaper and magazine writer and best-selling author. His television work included six years as an associate producer at CBC’s The Fifth Estate.
Conservative Party candidate Jim Sybros is a longtime business owner in the community. His family built Square Boy restaurant on Danforth Avenue, which has been in business for generations, and he is also the co-owner of the East Toronto Coffee Co. on Oak Street. He has built relationships through his businesses with local residents, supported numerous community initiatives and interacted with community members on a daily basis.
For more information on this month’s Beaches-East York federal byelection, including how to vote and polling station locations and times, please visit the Elections Canada website at https://www.elections.ca/content.aspx?section=ele&dir=2026/35007&document=index&lang=e
EDITOR’S NOTE: This story has been updated to add the name of the People’s Party of Canada candidate who registered after this story was originally posted.
