An MLA in Southwestern Manitoba doesn’t think the electoral boundary review will have a big impact on his constituency.

The 2018 Electoral Divisions Boundaries Commission was established to review the electoral boundaries for Manitoba provincial elections. Under The Electoral Divisions Act, the boundaries are reviewed every 10 years.

The Electoral Divisions Boundaries Commission is non-partisan and independent of government and its membership is set out in the Act. The responsibility of the Commission is to review all provincial electoral division boundaries, including the name of each division. As Manitoba's population changes, the review is necessary to ensure effective representation for everyone. If a division has a significant increase or decrease in population, the boundaries for that division might need to change.

“This happens every 10 years and we will have to wait and see what the commission finds but I don’t think there will be much of a shift for Arthur-Virden” said MLA Doyle Piwniuk.


The legislation requires the Commission to base its review on the 2016 Statistics Canada census population for Manitoba. This total (1,278,365) is divided by the number of provincial electoral divisions in the province (57), establishing a quotient for each division (approximately 22,427 people per division).
The Act states that, where the Commission is of the opinion that a population variation is desirable, electoral division populations may vary. For divisions south of the 53rd parallel, the population may vary by 10% above or below the quotient and for divisions north or partially north of the 53rd parallel, by 25% above or below the quotient.

“Last time the process combined Minnedosa and Russell to form Riding Mountain Constituent so things can change and it’s all based on population trends and where people live.”

The Commission will issue its initial 2018 proposal regarding electoral divisions in June. Public hearings to consider that proposal will be held in September, before the Commission's final report.
The public to participate by visiting the Electoral Divisions Boundaries Commission website at http://www.boundariescommission.mb.ca/ and making a submission online. Submissions will also be accepted by email, fax and regular mail or by registering to make a submission at a public hearing. The public hearing schedule, along with online registration, will be available in June 2018.

The final report of the Commission will set out the new electoral boundaries and their names. The new boundaries will come into effect for the next general election in 2020, unless a general election is called sooner.