Residents in three New Brunswick ridings will be heading to the polls on April 24, the premier announced Thursday.

Byelections have been announced for the ridings of Dieppe, Restigouche-Chaleur, and Bathurst East-Nepisiguit-Saint-Isidore.

“Holding these byelections will help to ensure that all New Brunswickers are represented in the legislative assembly,” Higgs said in a news release.

The seats have been vacant since last fall after Liberal MLAs Roger Melanson, Daniel Guitard, and Denis Landry resigned to take on new roles.

Melanson, the party’s interim leader, stepped down on Oct. 21 pursue a career in the private sector.

He is now vice-president of sales for Scoudouc-based Ditech Testing, which specializes in refurbishing cylinders and tanks for the liquid petroleum industry.

Guitard and Landry both left provincial politics on Nov. 30 after winning municipal seats days earlier. Guitard is now the mayor of Belle-Baie while Landry is the mayor of Hautes-Terre.

Newly-elected Liberal leader Susan Holt, who does not hold a seat in the legislature, will run in the riding of Bathurst East-Nepisiguit-Saint-Isidore.

The close of nominations for the three byelections is 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 8, according to Elections New Brunswick. Two days of advance voting are scheduled for Saturday, April 15 and Monday, April 17.

Currently, the Progressive Conservatives hold 29 seats in the legislature, the Liberals hold 13 seats, the Greens hold three seats, one seat is independent, and three seats are vacant.