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Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party has retained power but as a minority government, according to projections by Canada’s national broadcaster, CBC.
Despite some early losses in Canada’s eastern provinces, the Liberals are expected to claim the most seats in parliament, giving them a second term.
This federal election was seen as a referendum on Mr Trudeau, who endured a bumpy first term, tainted by scandal.
His Liberals were neck-and-neck with their centre-right Conservative rivals.
Mr Trudeau’s weakened grip on power will force him to work with other parties to pass legislation during this next term.
If the projection proves to be correct, it will be a bitterly disappointing result for Conservative leader Andrew Scheer.
How has election night unfolded so far?
Early returns pointed to trouble for Mr Trudeau. His sweep of the Atlantic region was quickly upended, with Conservative and New Democratic wins in the east.
But while the Liberals did not repeat their 2015 landslide, they still kept six of their seven seats in Newfoundland and Labrador – Canada’s easternmost province.
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Voters celebrate at the Liberal headquarters in Montreal
CBC is also predicting that the party will retain the seats of three high-profile Members of Parliament throughout the Atlantic, including Lawrence MacAulay in Cardigan, Prince Edward Island, Dominic LeBlanc in Beauséjour and Geoff Regan in Halifax West.