Longest ballot protest group returns, targets byelection in Terrebonne

The group that recruited hundreds of people to run against Pierre Poilievre in last spring’s election and last summer’s byelection says it’s now targeting the vote in Terrebonne.

The Longest Ballot Committee says it’s signing up candidates for the April 13 byelection in the Quebec riding the Liberals won by a single vote last spring.

Read more:

• Alberta updates plan for upcoming legislation to combat long ballot initiatives
• Poilievre calls for law to block long ballot protests ahead of Alberta byelection
• Electoral reform, dinosaurs and ‘spite’: the ‘Longest Ballot’ protest, explained

The Supreme Court of Canada invalidated that result because Elections Canada sent mail-in ballots with an incorrect postal code to some voters.

The longest ballot group forced Elections Canada to print ballots that were a metre long in Poilievre’s riding in last April’s election, and to use a special write-in ballot in the byelection last August.

Canada’s chief electoral officer has called on the government to change the candidate nomination rules to make such protests more difficult, but no changes have been made so far.

The group says it’s trying to point out that members of Parliament shouldn’t be in charge of making the rules that govern elections.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 17, 2026.