Mumbai: For much of the past decade, Tanveer Shahnawaz, a Bangladeshi-Canadian, worked behind the scenes in the office of the man representing Toronto’s Beaches-East York. He helped residents navigate federal services, worked with community organisations and eventually became the MP’s constituency office manager.
Now, he is set to take his former boss’s seat in the Canadian Parliament.
Shahnawaz, the Liberal Party candidate, won Monday’s federal byelection in Beaches-East York, retaining for the Liberals a Toronto seat that Nate Erskine-Smith had represented since 2015.
Shahnawaz received 18,361 votes, or 55.7 per cent, according to preliminary election results. New Democratic Party (NDP) candidate Shannon Devine finished second with 8,512 votes, or 25.8 per cent, while Conservative Jim Syrbos received 5,116 votes, or 15.5 per cent. Turnout stood at 40.39 per cent.
Prime Minister Mark Carney congratulated Shahnawaz in a post on X, saying, “Tanveer knows his community, fights for it, and delivers. Together, we’ll build Ontario strong and Canada strong for all.”
Meanwhile, Shahnawaz took to X to encourage Candians from diverse backgrounds to represent the country. He wrote, “This is a meaningful milestone for me, my family and the Bangladeshi-Canadian community and I hope it encourages more young Canadians from every background to see themselves represented in our country’s institutions.”
A decade in the constituency
Shahnawaz was born and raised in Crescent Town and studied political science at the University of Toronto. He spent the past decade working alongside former MP Erskine-Smith, eventually becoming his office manager and a special adviser when Erskine-Smith was federal housing minister.
His work in the constituency office involved helping residents access federal programmes and services and assisting community organisations seeking government funding. He also worked on housing and infrastructure issues during his time with Erskine-Smith.
His work extended beyond the MP’s office.
During the Covid pandemic, Shahnawaz worked with East Toronto Health Partners and community organisations to organise mobile vaccination clinics in underserved neighbourhoods. After the 2018 Danforth shooting, he also worked with Danforth Families for Safe Communities on gun-control advocacy.
The Liberal Party highlighted Shahnawaz’s work as co-chair of the Taylor-Massey & Oakridge Community Response Team, along with his involvement in community events and food-distribution initiatives in Beaches—East York.
Shahnawaz won the Liberal nomination on 18 July, defeating Summer Nudel, former Ontario legislator Arthur Potts, and lawyer Claire Seaborn. A total of 873 ballots were counted in the ranked-ballot contest. Erskine-Smith backed his former staffer for the nomination.
Who did he replace?
Nathaniel Erskine-Smith had represented Beaches-East York since 2015, winning the seat again in 2019, 2021 and 2025. Justin Trudeau appointed him minister of housing, infrastructure and communities at the end of 2024. He stayed in that role after Carney became prime minister but was dropped from cabinet after the 2025 federal election.
Erskine-Smith formally resigned as MP on 7 July 2026, creating the vacancy that led to Monday’s byelection. As per a report by The Canadian Press on August 19, Erskine-Smith has since turned to municipal politics and is contesting the 26 October Toronto election for the Beaches-East York city council seat.
Shahnawaz’s victory was also part of a clean sweep for Carney’s Liberals on Monday. The party won all three federal byelections, retaining Beaches-East York and North Vancouver-Capilano, while taking Chicoutimi-Le Fjord in Quebec from the Conservatives.
(Edited by Aakriti Handa)