4 reasons why you should care about redistribution

The electoral map for the Oct. 19 federal election has been redrawn extensively, with new ridings carved out of old, different riding names, and fresh sets of boundaries. Here is a brief guide to how these changes will affect this election and why it matters.

1. What's changed? Almost everything

There now are 338 ridings, up from 308 in the last Parliament.

In total, 90 per cent of the electoral districts have changed in one form or another. In some areas, this means that ridings that once held both urban and rural communities have been carved in two.

The redistribution process occurs every 10 years after a census and is carefully calculated to reflect changing population patterns across the country.

A total of 30 new ridings have been added to the map, representing the largest addition in Canadian history.

Here is the new distribution of ridings, by province and territory:

2. How was redistribution accomplished?

The exhaustive process of redistribution began in 2012. Ten independent electoral boundaries commissions one in each province were tasked with determining the new boundaries. Each commission was composed of three members who consulted with the public and MPs.

3. What would've happened in 2011 with these boundaries?

If these new boundaries had been used in the 2011 election, would things have changed?

According to an Elections Canada study that examined the polling station data, the Conservative Party would still have won, and in fact would've picked up an additional 22 seats. The NDP would've gained six and the Liberals two.

To see the 2011 results transposed over the new boundaries, see our interactive map.

**Please note, our data also includes voting information at the poll level from byelections that have been held since 2011. Our analysis included not only the ridings that held byelections but also neighbouring ridings whose results might have changed given the shifting boundaries.

Here's how the hypothetical vote breaks down:

In Newfoundland, the riding of Avalon switches from a Liberal win to a Conservative win.

In Quebec, the riding of Ahuntsic (now AhuntsicCartierville) shifts from the Bloc Qubcois to the Liberals.

GaspsieLes les-de-la-Madeleine, which elected the NDP, would've sent a BQ member to the House.

Ontario's Brampton East (formerly BramaleaGoreMalton) was won by the Conservatives but flips to the NDP.

Ontario's Don Valley East flips from a Conservative to a Liberal victory.

Saskatchewan's ReginaLewvan, (formerly ReginaLumsdenLake Centre), and Saskatoon West (formerly SaskatoonRosetownBiggar) flips from Conservative to NDP.

British Columbia's Burnaby NorthSeymour (formerly BurnabyDouglas) would've elected a Conservative candidate over the NDP.

4) So why should I care?

Redistribution will have significant implications for voters and politicians alike.

Voters should visit Elections Canada to check their riding and ensure they are registered to vote.

People in and near Canada's largest cities will see their voting power increase, with more urban MPs than ever before. As a result, the national agenda may be more focused on cities than before.

Ontario's importance as a key battleground will increase, given that it sends more than one-third of the country's MPs to the House of Commons. B.C.'s six additional seats are also expected to prove crucial as polls indicate this election will be a horserace between the three parties. There is a strong likelihood that voters in B.C. could decide which party is victorious.

Political strategists have pored over the new boundaries and districts and hedged their bets as to where shifting pools of party support may reside.In Saskatchewan, urban and rural communities which have been blended into combined ridings since the 1960s have been split apart.

Political watchers have similarly set their sights on new ridings such as B.C.'s Vancouver-Granville. The riding was cut out of Liberal-held Vancouver Centre and Vancouver Quadra, Conservative-dominated Vancouver South and NDP stronghold Vancouver Kingsway. The map below shows 2011 polling station data transposed over the new riding boundaries and reflects how tight a race this could theoretically shape up to be.