MP John Williamson Expects Federal Election Call in a Matter of Days

MP John Williamson expects a federal election to be called on Sunday, August 15, with a likely election date of September 20, 2021. 

"The news that's breaking is that an election will be called this week," said Williamson, who holds the federal seat in the riding of New Brunswick Southwest. "It's not 100%, but there's a sense in Ottawa that there will be an election some time over the late summer. The Prime Minister's thinking is that if he calls an election now, he could win a majority and refresh his government. I don't accept that. I think he's governing safely now, and the NDP be said they would support his minority government for the two years left in this term, but when you're the Prime Minister, you get to decide when to call an election. It looks like Justin Trudeau is going to roll the dice and call an election very soon."

Williamson is currently one of three Conservative MPs in the province, with the rest of the seats belonging to Liberals since MP Jenica Atwin walked the floor from the Green Party to Trudeau's Liberals earlier this summer. Trudeau is banking on his government gaining more seats in the next federal election in the hopes of gaining a majority, but Williamson thinks calling an election at the start of the fourth wave of the COVID-19 pandemic could backfire on Trudeau's hopes for a majority. 

"We've been told for the last 17 months to stay safe and to stay prudent, but now the Prime Minister seems to be throwing that aside. From my perspective, that could have an impact on who votes and who feels comfortable voting."