The Political Record · Federal electoral districts
Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke
Federal riding · BC · No. 59012 · 2023 representation order
- Member
- Stephanie McLean Liberal
- 2025 result
- Liberal gain by 15,099 votes
- Turnout
- 74.2% of 99,386 electors
- Population
- 120,175 2021 census
- Area
- 975 km²
- Figures as of
- 2026-09-25
Distinctions · ranked against all 343 ridings
- Most candidates on the ballot in British Columbia7 candidates stood · 2nd of 43 in British Columbia · 24th of 343 in Canada
- Highest turnout in British Columbia74.2% of 99,386 electors voted · 3rd of 43 in British Columbia · 45th of 343 in Canada
- Changed hands in 2025One of 58 of 343 ridings where the winning party changed from the transposed 2021 result (14 of 43 in British Columbia)
In brief
Illustration after: © House of Commons
Member of Parliament
Stephanie McLean
- Secretary of State (Seniors)
IDid this riding change?
Yes. 4% of today's Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke came from ridings other than the old Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke.
Share of today's areaFormer riding
95.7%Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke 98% of it kept
4.3%Cowichan—Malahat—Langford 1% of it kept
How this is measured. Share of the current riding's area that came from each former riding, by intersecting the 2013 and 2023 boundary files. It is area, not population. Elections Canada counts 48 of 343 ridings as entirely unchanged.
IIThe 2025 result
Liberal gain
Elected
Stephanie McLean
Liberal
36,181
49.3% of valid votes
Margin
15,099
votes · +20.6 pts
Runner-up
Grant Cool
Conservative
21,082
28.7% of valid votes
Liberal 49.3% · Conservative 28.7% · New Democratic 18.6% · Green 2.7%
Turnout74.2% of 99,386 electors
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | 2021 | ± |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stephanie McLean | Liberal | 36,181 | 49.3% | 21.7% | +27.6 |
| Grant Cool | Conservative | 21,082 | 28.7% | 20.8% | +7.9 |
| Maja Tait | New Democratic | 13,666 | 18.6% | 42.9% | −24.3 |
| Ben Homer-Dixon | Green | 1,959 | 2.7% | 8.8% | −6.1 |
3 further candidates, each under 1% of the vote
| David Schaafsma | Other | 159 | 0.2% |
| Param Bhatti | Independent | 152 | 0.2% |
| Robert Crooks | Other | 136 | 0.2% |
The 2021 column is Elections Canada's official transposition of the 2021 result onto these 2023 boundaries. ± is the change in each party's share. It is not "swing": with four or more competitive parties there is no single pair to swing between.
IIIHow close was it, really
Swing needed to flip
10.3 pts
Half the margin: the share that would have had to move from first to second.
Third place vs. the margin
13,666 votes
New Democratic took fewer than the 15,099-vote margin.
Election-day polls won by others
33 of 202
2 polls ended in an exact tie.
Flip the seatHypothetical
It would have taken 7,550 voters switching from Liberal to Conservative — 10.3% of the 73,335 valid votes, 10.3 points — to change the result. No ballot was cast this way; this only moves votes between the top two.
Liberal36,181
Conservative21,082
Still Liberal by 15,099 votes. Actual margin: 15,099.
IVElection day versus advance
Only 47.1% of this riding's votes were cast at election-day polls. The rest were advance or special ballots.
Election dayAdvance & specialGap
Liberal44.7%53.4%+8.7
Conservative31.4%26.4%−5.0
New Democratic20.1%17.4%−2.7
Green3.1%2.3%−0.8
An association, not a cause. Voters who cast ballots before election day differed from those who turned out on the day. It does not say why. There is no poll-level turnout figure on this page: the elector count on a polling division includes people who voted in advance and were counted elsewhere.
VWhat kind of place this is
- Median total household income is $88,000 — a little higher than the median riding's $84,000.highestlowest128th highest of 343
- Median age is 43.6 — a little higher than the median riding's 41.6.highestlowest106th highest of 343
- Share aged 25-64 with a bachelor's degree or higher is 29.8% — a little higher than the median riding's 28.2%.highestlowest159th highest of 343
- Share who are immigrants is 16.1% — a little lower than the median riding's 17.3%.highestlowest167th lowest of 343
- Share of households that own their home is 67.7% — a little lower than the median riding's 71.4%.highestlowest129th lowest of 343
- Share with French as a mother tongue is 1.8% — a little higher than the median riding's 1.6%.highestlowest146th highest of 343
2021 Census, keyed to the 2023 representation order. Comparisons are against the median riding, not Canada as a whole. Each rule places this riding among all 343.
VIWhere it is
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The card
No. 59012BC · 2025
Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke
Stephanie McLean
- Result
- Liberal gain by 15,099
- Turnout
- 74.2%
- Population
- 120,175
- Area
- 975 km²
Most candidates on the ballot in British ColumbiaHighest turnout in British ColumbiaChanged hands in 2025
One of 343The Political Record
A card exists for every one of the 343 ridings.
Every figure on it is the figure on this page: the 2025 result and margin, turnout, the 2021 census population, the area, and the distinctions ranked against all 343 ridings. The portrait is an illustration after the official House of Commons photograph.
Open a neighbour to collect the next one.