John Yakabuski had held the riding for the provincial Conservatives since 2003, but he announced in November that he would not be seeking re-election.
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The sprawling rural riding northwest of Ottawa follows the Ottawa River as its northeastern boundary from Arnprior north to Deep River. The western boundary extends to Algonquin Provincial Park.
The region is defined by its dense wilderness and tracts of farmland dotted with small historic towns, with well-traversed cottage country along the many lakes and rivers and the picturesque Madawaska and Bonnechere valleys.
The largest community is Pembroke, a former logging centre settled nearly two hundred years ago and whose population has remained stable for decades at around 14,000 residents.
Arnprior is a fast-growing town about 60 kilometres west of Ottawa, and the riding is also home to Renfrew, Eganville, Barry’s Bay, Cobden and Petawawa.
It’s a largely rural area where 78 per cent of private dwellings are single, detached houses. Residents overwhelmingly speak English at home, and are slightly older than the provincial average.
A former Liberal stronghold at the provincial and federal levels, voters changed allegiances to the Progressive Conservatives around the turn of the millennium and have not looked back.
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MP Cheryl Gallant became the first woman elected to federal office in Renfrew County when she defeated Liberal Hec Clouthier in the 2000 federal election.
The riding was one of only three in Ontario that did not send a Liberal to the House of Commons in 2000.
Gallant first won the seat as a member of the Canadian Alliance party and later under the Conservative banner. She was re-elected in 2021 for her eighth term in office.
John Yakabuski had held the riding for the provincial Conservatives since 2003, when he defeated the Liberal candidate by a few hundred votes — a margin of 1.5 per cent.
It was the only former Liberal seat flipped by the Conservatives that year as the provincial Liberals formed a solid majority government.
Yakabuski enjoyed a mandate from his constituents in every election since, garnering more than 60 per cent of the local vote in the past five elections.
The long-serving MPP announced in November he would not seek re-election.
Yakabuski served as the Minister of Transportation from June to November 2018 and then as Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry from 2018 to 2021. He then took on a role at Queen’s Park as parliamentary assistant to the premier.
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In 2018, when the Liberal Party was decimated provincially, the NDP candidate finished as runner-up in Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke with 17 per cent of the vote compared to 10 per cent for the Liberal candidate. Yakabuski received 69 per cent of the vote that year.
Yakabuski’s support dipped slightly in 2022 to 61 per cent, while vote totals for the NDP and Liberal challengers remained relatively unchanged.
The current riding was created in 1999 and was a Liberal hold in that election for Sean Conway, who had been MPP for the former Renfrew North riding for 24 years before that.
The former Renfrew South riding was also held for 24 years, but by Conservative Paul Yakabuski — John’s late father.
Following John Yakabuski’s announcement in November 2024, the Conservative torch has passed to a relative newcomer.
Billy Denault, a life-long Ottawa Valley resident and municipal councillor in the Town of Arnprior, was named the candidate in January.
“Our province is at a crossroads, with economic uncertainty from threats south of the border,” Deneault posted on his Facebook page. “We need a government prepared to stand strong and protect Ontario. Premier (Doug) Ford is prepared to protect Ontario’s economy, workers and businesses that our communities depend on.”
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Elected as a municipal councillor in 2022, Denault’s provincial election campaign has focused on expanding housing choices, fostering small business collaboration and encouraging industry and community involvement, according to his municipal campaign website.
Community leader, municipal professional and former councillor Oliver Jacob returns as the Liberal Party candidate after finishing third in the riding in 2022 with 3,928 votes.
From 2018 to 2022, Jacob served as one of the youngest municipal councillors in the history of the Township of McNab/Braeside.
During his 2025 campaign launch, Jacob said more than one-third of Renfrew-Nipissing-Pembroke residents didn’t have family doctors, thousands of residents were using their local food banks every month and there was still no provincial leadership to tackle the extension of Highway 417 through the Ottawa Valley, the Pembroke Observer reported.
NDP candidate Marshall Buchanan said he and the Ontario NDP were emphasizing the need for increased investments in health care, education and infrastructure to better serve rural communities.
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“I have been a small business owner and community builder — leading new opportunities in local food, agri-tourism, education, youth sports, forest management and economic development,” Buchanan told the Pembroke Observer. “I am a leader that listens and delivers.”
Green Party candidate Anna Dolan is an architect who “understands how we can design communities to be more connected, sustainable and affordable,” the party said in a statement.
“We need to reimagine our built environment to be more green, healthy and climate-friendly,” Dolan said in a statement. “That means protecting prime agricultural land, wetlands and other sensitive areas by encouraging infill development to prevent endless sprawl.”
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