New Brunswickers with thoughts on the province’s new federal electoral map now have the chance to share them.
A series of eight public hearings taking place throughout the province will begin Wednesday in Woodstock.
Other communities set to host hearings this month are Saint-Quentin, Newcastle, Shediac, Moncton, Rothesay, Saint Andrews and Fredericton. Previously scheduled hearings in Saint-Léolin and Sussex have been cancelled.
In addition to the in-person hearings, a virtual hearing has also been scheduled for the evening of Sept. 29.
The Federal Electoral Boundaries Commission for New Brunswick released its proposed new electoral map in June.
One of the major changes suggested by the commission would see the City of Saint John split into two ridings.
Areas west of the Saint John River and Saint John Harbour would join New Brunswick Southwest, which would be renamed Saint John-St. Croix.
The rest of the city would remain in Saint John-Rothesay, which would grow to include Quispamsis and be renamed Saint John-Kennebecasis.
What is currently New Brunswick Southwest would lose the villages of Harvey and McAdam, the Rural Community of Hanwell, and several local parishes to the riding of Tobique-Mactaquac.
Riverview would be moved from the Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe riding and join Fundy Royal. The new riding names would be Moncton-Dieppe and Fundy Royal-Riverview.
The small part of the City of Moncton that is currently in the riding of Beauséjour would also be moved to the proposed riding of Moncton-Dieppe.
The commission must ensure the population of each riding is as close as possible to the electoral quota. Based upon the 2021 census, that number is 77,561 residents per electoral district.
However, the commission can also depart from the quota in order to “respect the community of interest or community of identity in or the historical pattern of an electoral district in the province” or “to maintain a manageable geographic size for districts in sparsely populated, rural or northern regions of the province.”
Currently, Saint John-Rothesay is 5.7 per cent over the electoral quota, New Brunswick Southwest is 12.6 per cent under, Fundy Royal is 7.9 per cent over, and Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe is 30.5 per cent over.
Under the proposed new ridings, Saint John-Kennebecasis would be 5.7 per cent over the quota, Saint John-St. Croix would be 1.8 per cent over, Fundy Royal-Riverview would be 4.3 per cent under, and Moncton-Dieppe would be 17.8 per cent over.
In addition to feedback from the public, commission members will also consider objections from MPs before preparing a final report outlining the electoral boundaries for the province.
Elections Canada has said the new electoral map is expected to be done in late 2023, but the changes will not take effect until at least 2024.