Photo: William Matheson from Bedford, Nova Scotia, Canada · CC BY-SA 2.0More of Malpeque voted in 2021 than in most ridings: 75%, ahead of 99%
Locally, West River is run as a rural municipality. No open list of councils exists on Prince Edward Island, so no mayor of West River is named here. West River is in Malpeque, its riding (a federal electoral district, which elects one MP), and the seat belongs to Heath MacDonald of the Liberal Party of Canada. The Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island’s riding map is published without a licence, so this page doesn’t place West River in a riding.
What stands out in how West River is governed
A close federal race
With 8.8 points between the winner and the runner-up (Conservative Party of Canada), Malpeque beat 76% of the 338 ridings for closeness in 2021. How West River has voted ↓
High federal turnout
Federal turnout in Malpeque beat 99% of Canada’s ridings in 2021. The 2021 turnout ↓
Compared with the province’s municipalities of 1,000+ residents (2021 Census; MAMH, MMAH and Statistics Canada).
Three governments, and who does what
West River, a rural municipality in Prince Edward Island, shares the work with the province and Ottawa.
Local services, by-laws and property tax.
Schools, health care, highways, municipal law.
assembly.pe.ca ↗Passports, pensions, EI, defence, immigration.
ourcommons.ca ↗Who to ask
Green: municipal. Gold: provincial. Grey: federal.
The census places West River in Queens, a division that governs nothing; no county council sits above the town’s.
From the council table to Ottawa
Every elected tier that speaks for West River, from the most recent elections.
- 1West River councilRural municipality
- 2Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island–
- 3House of CommonsMalpeque
Party colours are neutral on purpose: they tell parties apart and aren’t the parties’ own. MPs: Wikidata (CC0), 45th Parliament statements, read 7 November 2026; ridings: 2023 Representation Order, Statistics Canada
When West River votes
The last and next general elections at each level; a by-election can come in between.
| Election | Last | Next |
|---|---|---|
| West River council | 2 November 2026 | 4 November 2030 |
| Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island | 3 April 2023 | – |
| House of Commons | 28 April 2025 | – |
The latest vote shown is 2021: the 2025 counts carry Elections Canada’s non-commercial terms. Elected on 2 November 2026, West River council is up again on 4 November 2030. It is the first Monday in November every four years, as the Municipal Election Act provides. The last general elections came on 3 April 2023 for the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island and on 28 April 2025 for Parliament.
Election dates: the legislatures, MMAH and MAMH
The Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island: riding not placed
Provinces and territories run schools, health care and municipal law; each riding elects one MLA.
Find your MLA on the legislature’s site
assembly.pe.ca ↗Legislatures: their own member pages
Heath MacDonald represents Malpeque in Ottawa
Each riding elects one MP to the House of Commons; the general election of 28 April 2025 chose the 45th Parliament.
Malpeque · Liberal Party of Canada · first elected 2021
en.wikipedia.org ↗- Liberal Party of Canada4
As Wikidata records them.
The Liberal Party of Canada holds 4 of 4 seats from Prince Edward Island, including Heath MacDonald’s.
The MP’s record
Heath MacDonald has sat in the Commons since 2021, now for the 2nd Parliament. Mapped onto today’s Malpeque, the 2021 vote gives the Liberal Party of Canada 42%; in 2025 Heath MacDonald kept the seat in the same hands.
MPs: Wikidata (CC0), 45th Parliament statements, read 7 November 2026; ridings: 2023 Representation Order, Statistics Canada · MPs’ records: Wikidata (CC0), positions held and party memberships, read 8 November 2026
The Liberal Party of Canada kept Malpeque in 2021 with Heath MacDonald
Results in Malpeque as drawn in 2013, the boundaries of the 2019 and 2021 elections; the riding was redrawn for 2025.
Wayne Easter (Liberal Party of Canada) had taken it in 2019 with 41%. Heath MacDonald won the 2021 race in Malpeque for the Liberal Party of Canada, polling 42% and beating Jody Sanderson (Conservative Party of Canada) by 2,076 votes.
All 5 candidates in Malpeque, 2021
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heath MacDonald | Liberal Party of Canada | 9,912 | 41.8% |
| Jody Sanderson | Conservative Party of Canada | 7,836 | 33.1% |
| Anna Keenan | Green Party of Canada | 3,381 | 14.3% |
| Michelle Neill | New Democratic Party | 1,898 | 8.0% |
| Christopher Landry | People's Party of Canada | 680 | 2.9% |
Federal results: Elections Canada, 43rd and 44th general elections and the 44th’s transposition to the 2023 ridings, via open.canada.ca. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada
Having a say in how West River is run
Check or update the federal list.
elections.ca ↗Every MP lists an office.
ourcommons.ca ↗Ridings, registration and voting dates.
electionspei.ca ↗What this data can and can’t tell you
- Not on this page. Band councils, municipal budgets and party control are left out; most councils sit without parties anyway.
- Election results. The 2019 and 2021 figures are Elections Canada’s official counts on the ridings drawn in 2013; the “today’s boundaries” figures are its transposition of the 2021 vote onto the 2023 ridings, an estimate built from polling divisions.
- Which riding. A place belongs to the riding where most of its 2021 Census residents live, plus any other with 5% or more.
- Who holds each seat. A member who resigned or switched parties last week may still show here: the names are Wikidata’s.
Questions about how West River is run
Who is the MP for West River?
Heath MacDonald (Liberal Party of Canada) sits for Malpeque, the riding West River is in.
Which party won West River in the 2021 federal election?
In 2021 it was Heath MacDonald (Liberal Party of Canada), who represents Malpeque still.
Who is the MLA for West River?
Every MLA of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island is on its members page, which is where to find the one for West River.
Who heads the council in West River?
The head of West River’s council isn’t named here; as a rural municipality, it publishes its council itself.
Sources: MPs: Wikidata (CC0), 45th Parliament statements, read 7 November 2026; ridings: 2023 Representation Order, Statistics Canada · Next municipal election: the province’s municipal election act · Municipality types: Statistics Canada census subdivisions · Federal results: Elections Canada, 43rd and 44th general elections and the 44th’s transposition to the 2023 ridings, via open.canada.ca. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada · MPs’ records: Wikidata (CC0), positions held and party memberships, read 8 November 2026. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).