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Canada Heads for Record By-Election Year

Canada could spend more than $24 million replacing MPs in a Parliament elected just 15 months ago, as a wave of departures puts 2026 on course for the country’s busiest federal by-election year since 1978.

Elections Canada recorded 11 by-elections in 2017 at an estimated total cost of $10.048 million. If 12 contests this year average the roughly $2 million cited by Elections Canada to The Canadian Press, the 2026 bill would exceed $24 million, roughly 139% above the 2017 total despite involving only one additional riding.

Actual costs could differ substantially. Elections Canada says expenses vary with geography, campaign length, facilities, staffing, advertising, technology, and other requirements. Its 2025 Battle River–Crowfoot by-election alone was estimated at $2.342 million, with the agency citing higher costs and its 49-day campaign period.

You can read more on the matter here.

What’s going on?

• French Publishers Challenge Google AI Summaries Cutting Traffic By 38% (theDeepDive)

• U.S. Fires on Ship Breaking Its Blockade of Iran (WSJ)

• Conservative MP Takes Parliament to Court Because He Rejects His Pay Increase (theDeepDive)

• Former Carney adviser, CMHC head named inaugural chair of Build Canada Homes (FreePress)

• Defence Minister Admits F-35 Purchase Review ‘A Point Of Debate’ In US-Canada Negotiations (theDeepDive)

• Ontario Line cost jumps to $34B, more than triple amount initially projected (CBC)

• Kushner Resort Pushes Ahead Despite Frozen Albania Land Funds (theDeepDive)

• Petition calls for U.S. ambassador to be removed from Canada (CTV)

• Gunn and Thériault Want Lobbying Commissioner to Investigate Carney’s Condo Plan (theDeepDive)

What’s the latest?

• Trade War: Canada and U.S. trade officials are targeting a framework for a deal before the Aug. 19 tariff deadline, with Dominic LeBlanc and Jamieson Greer holding their second meeting in less than a week. Talks reportedly include Canada removing auto counter-tariffs and provincial alcohol bans, plus changes to dairy quotas; without a deal, 50% U.S. tariffs could hit about C$28 billion of Canadian imports.

• Economy: A new Oxford Economics report warns that Canada could lose 102,000 jobs if CUSMA collapses, while the U.S. could lose 214,000 jobs in 2027. A successful renegotiation could instead create 98,000 Canadian and 137,000 U.S. jobs, but 50% U.S. tariffs on certain Canadian goods are set to begin Aug. 19 without CUSMA exemptions.

• Markets: The S&P/TSX rose 17.59 points to a record 36,475.92, supported by utilities and industrials; Cargojet jumped 8.59% after swinging to a $7M Q2 profit, while Cineplex fell 5.3% despite returning to profit. U.S. markets declined ahead of July inflation data, with the S&P 500 down 24.91 points and Nasdaq down 159.91 points; oil rose to US$83.20 and gold to US$4,441.10.

• Politics: The federal government awarded PCL Construction a $768.6M contract to build new laboratories at the CFIA campus in Ottawa, with the project expected to contribute about $900M to NATO-related security and resilience spending over 10 years. The facility, scheduled for completion in 2031, will bring together roughly 275 scientists and researchers from four federal agencies to strengthen food safety, public health, border security and emergency preparedness.

• Oil: Oil prices climbed more than 1.3% Tuesday, with WTI closing at US$83.20/barrel and Brent at US$88.91, bringing weekly gains above 6% as hopes for reopening the Strait of Hormuz faded. Iran is demanding the unfreezing of overseas funds before reopening the strait, while only 8 vessels crossed Monday versus 130+ before the war; U.S. oil flows are averaging about 9M barrels/day, and the Strategic Petroleum Reserve has fallen below 300M barrels.

Building Australias Next Gold Story

The stock market and stuff

• Losing 140x: Trump Media Loses $238M on $1.7M Revenue In Q2 2026 (theDeepDive)

• SEC Settles Fraud Charges Over Pre-IPO SpaceX and Klarna Investment Markups (theDeepDive)

• World’s Biggest Coal Miner Eyes Acquiring Canadian Lithium Microcap (theDeepDive)

• Why Canadian payments platform Moneris is being sold to U.S. private equity (Global)

• Barrick Names Sebastiaan Bock CEO of Rest of World Ahead of North American Split (theDeepDive)

• H&R REIT Breaks Apart in Blackstone-Led $6.7B Deal, To Delist From TSX (theDeepDive)

In the juniors

• Canadian Copper Draws $3.2M as Ocean Partners Increases Ownership to 21.3%, Picks Up Analyst Coverage (theDeepDive)

• Curaleaf Goes Hostile for Aurora Cannabis in US$4.00 A Share Offer (theDeepDive)

• i-80 Gold Produces More, Sells Less In Q2 As Third-Party Backlog Builds (theDeepDive)

FULL DISCLOSURE: Canadian Copper is a client of Canacom Group, the parent company of The Deep Dive. Canacom Group is currently long the equity of Canadian Copper. The author has been compensated to cover Canadian Copper on The Deep Dive, with The Deep Dive having full editorial control. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security.