First contested 1969 Province Manitoba | Last contested 2016 | |
 | ||
Legislature Legislative Assembly of Manitoba MLA Rochelle Squires
Progressive Conservative | ||
Riel is a provincial electoral division in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It was created by redistribution in 1968, and has formally existed since the provincial election of 1969. The riding is located in the south-central region of the City of Winnipeg, and is named after Louis Riel, the leader of the 1870 Red River Rebellion.
Map of Riel, Winnipeg, MB, Canada
Riel is bordered to the east by St. Vital, to the south by Seine River, to the north by St. Vital, and to the west by the ridings of Fort Richmond and Fort Garry-Riverview.
The riding's population in 1996 was 20,228. The riding's character is mostly middle-class and upper middle-class. In 1999, the average family income was $63,126, and the unemployment rate was 5.50%. Nine percent of the riding's residents are francophone.
The service industry accounts for 15% of Riel's economy, followed by health and social services at 12.5%.
Riel has usually been represented by candidates of the Progressive Conservative Party, although the New Democratic Party of Manitoba (NDP) have won the seat on three occasions. The current MLA is New Democrat Christine Melnick, who defeated her Progressive Conservative opponent by a margin of about 53% to 38% in 2003. Melnick won again in the 2007 Manitoba election winning with 60% of the vote.