No matter what happens on June 2, the riding of Elgin-Middlesex-London is guaranteed a new MPP in a rare open race with no veterans running.
The Progressive Conservatives snatched the riding from the Liberals in an open race in 2011, when long-time Liberal MPP Steve Peters, a former St. Thomas mayor, retired. Jeff Yurek took the seat for the Tories, serving in opposition during the Dalton McGuinty and Kathleen Wynne Liberal governments, then later in Premier Doug Ford’s cabinet.
Yurek was shuffled out of his ministerial role last year and, in January, announced he would not seek a fourth term.
The Tories have won the riding by wide margins in the last three elections, about 20 percentage points ahead of the second-place challenger each time.
The triangle-shaped, urban-rural riding covers all of Elgin County, including St. Thomas, Thames Center to the east and a significant swath of south London, from the Bostwick neighborhood to Lambeth.
The riding has historically been home to key players in Ontario’s automotive manufacturing sector and is spanned by the Hwy 401.
Agricultural issues loom large in the vast riding, which produces everything from corn and soybeans, to fruit and vegetables. The southern edge of the riding is the Lake Erie shoreline, where record-high water levels, erosion, flooding and the health of the commercial fishing industry are all key concerns.
Ground Zero for industrial and auto sector job losses in the area after the 2008 financial crisis, the communities in the riding have bounced back, with one attracting a massive Amazon distribution warehouse, now under construction, where Ford’s St. Thomas assembly plant once operated.
THE CANDIDATES
Brigitte Belton, Ontario Party
Rob Flack, P.
Heather JacksonLibera
Andy Kroeker, NDP
Malichi Male, Consensus Ontario
Matt Millar, New Blue
Dave Plumb, Freedom Party
Amanda Stark, Green