KANATA, Ont. — Jenna Sudds, the Liberal stalwart with deep roots in this tech-heavy Ottawa suburb, clinched re-election in Kanata’s federal riding on April 28, 2025, fending off a fierce Conservative push to keep the seat red. It’s her second term as MP, a victory that cements her as a mainstay in a riding redrawn and redefined for this election.
Sudds, 46, a former city councillor and mother of three, pulled in 43,787 votes—60.52% of the 72,347 ballots cast—according to Elections Canada’s final tally, with 236 of 237 polls reporting by early April 29. Her closest rival, Conservative Greg Kung, a paramedic and political veteran, trailed with 25,922 votes, or 35.83%. The NDP’s Melissa Simon, a recently laid-off tech writer, scraped together just 1,667 votes, a distant 2.3%. The numbers tell a story of a riding that, despite boundary changes and a national tug-of-war, leaned decisively Liberal.
Kanata, once called Kanata-Carleton, got a makeover for 2025. An independent review after the 2021 census carved out rural pockets like Constance Bay and Dunrobin, shifting them to the neighboring Carleton riding, where Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre ran. Meanwhile, Kanata gained Bells Corners from Nepean, boosting its voter base to about 90,000 among a population of 121,500. The new lines didn’t shake Sudds’ grip. Advance polls saw 28,891 voters turn out, a sign of the riding’s engaged electorate, which posted a 73.4% turnout back in 2021.
Sudds’ win wasn’t a cakewalk. In 2021, she squeaked by with a 1,921-vote margin over Conservative Jennifer McAndrew, a local businesswoman. This time, Kung, who served as a senior advisor to past Conservative finance ministers, brought a resume stacked with community board experience and a ground game to match. But Sudds, who stepped down as Minister of Families, Children and Social Development in a March 14 cabinet shuffle under new Liberal Leader Mark Carney, leaned on her record and local ties. A Kanata resident for two decades, she’s a familiar face, from her days as deputy mayor to her volunteer stints with the Kanata Food Cupboard.
The campaign wasn’t just about local issues like LRT expansion or rural internet—though Sudds has long championed both. National headwinds, including U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats, loomed large. Carney’s Liberals, projected to form a fourth-term government, framed the election as a stand for stability. Kanata voters, 68% of whom are anglophones per the 2021 census, seemed to buy in.
Voting wrapped up on April 28, with polls open from 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Advance voting ran from April 18 to 21, and the Kanata Returning Office handled special ballots until April 22. The riding, a mix of suburban sprawl and tech parks, has stayed Liberal for three straight elections, first under Karen McCrimmon, who held it in 2015 and 2019 before Sudds took over.
Sudds’ victory mirrors the Liberal surge under Carney, who replaced Justin Trudeau and led the party to 158 confirmed seats and leads in 10 more, with 8,251,213 votes nationwide, or 43.48% of the popular vote. Conservatives secured 142 seats and leads in two, with 7,858,966 votes, or 41.42%. The Bloc Québécois and NDP trailed far behind.
In Kanata, the final count came swiftly. By 4:08 a.m. on April 29, Sudds was projected as the winner, her lead insurmountable. Kung and Simon couldn’t close the gap. The riding’s Liberal streak holds—for now.