On Thursday, voters went to the polls in York-Simcoe and Scarborough Southwest, alongside Hamilton East-Stoney Creek, to choose their new MPPs.
The Hamilton East-Stoney Creek seat became vacant after former progressive conservative MPP Neil Lumsden retired last month.
There are two other seats available: one that was previously held by former PC Cabinet Minister Caroline Mulroney and another held by the NDP.
With polls closing at 9 p. m., excitement builds across three ridings in Ontario. Although the results won’t affect Premier Doug Ford’s majority government, many analysts view this as a referendum on his leadership.
“This is the first time voters have gone to the polls since Doug Ford’s summer drama of expenses, including one scandal that saw a cabinet minister lose their job,” said Sabrina Nanji, a journalist and founder of the Queen’s Park Observer. “He had been getting a lot of flack for his private jet purchase.”
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Recently, Ford has gained support in the polls since U. S. President Donald Trump renewed his threats against Canada.
“When we’re talking about Trump, that’s really good for Ford in the polls,” said Nanji. “He gets to put on his ‘Captain Canada’ cape and go elbows up, and we have seen that, including some colourful language from him recently.”
We’ll find out if this uptick in support translates into votes for Ford’s party since two of the three by-elections are in ridings currently held by the PCs, including Hamilton East-Stoney Creek.
In York-Simcoe, the Progressive Conservatives aim to keep their grip on the seat once occupied by Mulroney.
“That one, I think, is a bit of a slam dunk for the Conservatives – it has long been a riding that bleeds Tory blue,” said Nanji. “What I’ll be watching for is the nitty-gritty – what is the margin, what is the turnout for Susan Lahey, who is another local councillor who is flying the PC banner.”
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The third by-election will take place in Scarborough Southwest, which was previously an NDP riding.
“This is theirs to lose,” said Nanji. “I think this is shaping up to be more of a battle between the NDP and the Liberals. The Liberals have Ahsanul Hafiz, who is a member of the Bangladeshi community; same as Fatima Shaban for the NDP; this is a really big community in this riding.”
The Liberals are hoping for victory ahead of their leadership race set for November.
CHCH News will be live Thursday night at 11 p. m. with results and updates on these by-elections-including who voters selected as Hamilton East-Stoney Creek’s new MPP.
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