The election had been set for June 2026, but Ford said he needs a new mandate to deal with four years of a Donald Trump presidency in the United States.

Ford has said Trump’s threat to impose 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods would hit Ontario and its auto sector hard, and the provincial government would need to spend tens of billions of dollars to protect jobs and the economy.

“We want to move forward and make sure that we give certainty,” Ford said. 

Opposition parties have insisted an early election is not necessary, because they would support stimulus spending and Ford already has a mandate after voters handed him a large majority last time. Going to the polls now is opportunism to capitalize on good polling, they charge.

Ford has said he plans to continue acting in his capacity as premier, including visiting Washington, D.C., in February with a group of other premiers, while also campaigning as leader of the Progressive Conservatives.

The majority of Ottawa ridings are held by the Liberal Party of Ontario, and with some of Ottawa’s longest-serving MPs not seeking re-election, there is guaranteed to be some change in Ottawa in the election next month. With that in mind, here is an overview of each of Ottawa’s provincial ridings, including the current candidates:

Carleton (017)

The Ottawa Carleton riding is bordered by Hazeldean Road to the North, the Rideau River to the South, The Township of Russell Boundary Road to the East, and reaches just past Dwyer Hill Road to the East.

Data from the 2021 census depicts a population of 131,375 people and an area of 1,187 square kilometres. The riding, which is largely rural, is currently held by Goldie Ghamari. Ghamari was elected in 2018 as a Progressive Conservative before she was removed in 2024 from the party by Doug Ford due to her affiliations with far-right figure Tommy Robinson. She is now an independent member of Provincial Parliament and has not indicated if she will be seeking re-election.

Taking her place as the PC candidate for the area is George Darouze, who currently serves as the Ottawa city councillor for Osgoode. He was first elected to city council in 2014, then was re-elected to two consecutive terms in 2018 and 2022. Darouze immigrated to Canada from Lebanon in 1990 and has lived in Ottawa since then, working in telecommunications and business development, as well as holding volunteer positions prior to his election to the city council. He was announced as the provincial candidate on Dec. 8, 2024. 

Also vying for the seat is Brandon Bay. New to politics, Bay has been nominated as the Ontario Liberal candidate for Carleton. Bay is a software developer who has been advocating to improve healthcare and wellness through technology. He is also a community advocate, particularly for affordable housing. 

NDP and Green Party candidates have not yet been confirmed for the riding.

Kanata-Carleton (043)

The Kanata-Carleton riding is bordered by the Carleton Riding to the south and the Ottawa River to the north. The area of Kanata north of Hazeldean Road is in this riding, as are Marathon Village, Carp, Kinburn and March Road. 

2021 Census data reported that the riding spans 806 square kilometres and is home to 116,651 people. 

The riding is held by Liberal MPP Karen McCrimmon, who was elected in a by-election in 2023. McCrimmon is a Canadian Armed Forces veteran and mediator and previously held the federal seat, serving as MP for Kanata-Carleton from 2015 until 2021. She took over from Progressive Conservative MP Merrilee Fullerton.

At the time of publication, no other candidates have been announced for the riding.

Nepean (066)

The Nepean riding is 173 square kilometres in size and home to about 132,769 Ottawans. It is north of the Carleton riding and bordered by the Rideau River, Eagleson Road, Brophy Drive and Highway No. 417.

PC Lisa MacLeod has held the Nepean seat since 2006 when she was elected in a by-election to replace John Baird, who resigned to run federally, and has been re-elected in 2007, 2011 and 2014. MacLeod has held provincial Cabinet positions as Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, Minister Responsible for Women’s Issues and Minister of Children, Community and Social Services. 

In September of 2024, she announced she would not be seeing re-election in a video posted to social media. She made headlines on Jan. 7, 2025 when she shared the website of Husein Abu-Rayash, who is seeking the Progressive Conservative nomination for the Nepean riding, with comments that he said were Islamophobic.

She apologized after Abu-Rayash called for an apology and for the post to be removed, as well as comments that she could face legal repercussions for defamation.

The PC candidate to replace her has yet to be announced. Tyler Watt has been nominated as the Ontario Liberal candidate. He is a registered nurse and community advocate and was the most recent Liberal candidate for Nepean in the 2022 provincial election. 

Retired federal government employee and community volunteer Sheilagh McLean is the Green Party nominee for the riding. 

Orléans (076)

Bordered by Green’s Creek, the Ottawa River, Carlsbad Lane, Mitch Owens Road and Ramsayville Road, Orléans is Ottawa’s most eastern riding. The 211-square-kilometre riding is home to approximately 139,309 people and encompasses the communities of Blackburn Hamlet, Orléans, Piperville and part of Edwards. 

The Orléans riding is currently held by Progressive Conservative MP Steven Blais, who is running again. He was elected as MPP in 2020 in a by-election after serving as city councillor for Cumberland Ward since 2010. He was re-elected in 2014 and 2018 and has held the roles of chair of the Transit Commission and chair of the Transportation Committee at the City of Ottawa. 

Prior to serving on council, Blais was a school trustee for residents of Orléans and Cumberland on the Ottawa Catholic School Board from 2006 until 2010. 

Michelle Petersen, a registered psychotherapist and French-language advocate, is fronting the Green Party for the riding. The Liberal Party of Ontario and NDP have not yet confirmed their candidates. 

Ottawa Centre (078)

Ottawa Centre, the most central riding in the City of Ottawa, is only 37 square kilometres but home to 126,360 Ottawans. 

The riding reaches from Riverside Drive along the Rideau River up to Nicholas Street, along the Ottawa River, then West on Sherbourne Road, cutting along Highway No. 417 and then down Merivale Road. It is home to the Glebe, Centretown, Westboro, Rideauview, Little Italy, Dow’s Lake, Old Ottawa South, Old Ottawa East and part of the downtown core.

The riding has been held by NDP member Joel Harden since 2018, who took over from Liberal Yasir Naqvi when Naqvi made the switch to federal politics.

Harden is now following in his predecessor’s footsteps and announced he will be running for the federal seat in Ottawa Centre in the next election. In his place, long-serving city councillor and former mayoral candidate Catherine McKenney has been nominated as the NDP candidate for the riding.

Catherine was elected as a city councillor in 2014 after working at the City in senior positions. They were also a candidate in the mayoral race in 2022, running against now-Mayor Mark Sutcliffe. McKenney is also the co-founder of CitySHAPES, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to affordable housing, city-building and ending homelessness. 

Also vying for the seat is Liberal candidate Thomas Simpson, a newcomer to politics. Simpson has previously worked as a public servant and accessibility advocate, currently serving as a vice-president at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind. 

Other candidates have not yet been confirmed.

Ottawa South (079)

The riding of Ottawa South sits southeast of the Rideau River, north of Carleton and west of Highway No. 417, covering 73 square kilometres and home to 125,090 people.

Liberal John Fraser has been the riding’s MPP since 2013. Following the resignation of Kathleen Wynne as party leader in 2018. Fraser was unanimously elected as interim leader until Steven Del Duca was elected as Liberal Leader in 2020. Fraser was first elected in a 2013 by-election and replaced Dalton McGuinty, who retired. Fraser was then re-elected in 2014, 2018 and 2022, and was again appointed interim leader in 2022 until Bonnie Crombie was elected as Leader of the Liberal Party of Ontario in 2023. He is seeking re-election.

Up against Fraser is Progressive Conservative candidate Jan Gao, who comes from a professional background in corporate consulting and public administration. NDP and Green candidates have not yet been announced. 

Ottawa West-Nepean (081)

Spanning 88 square kilometres, the Ottawa-West Nepean riding has a population of 116,409 and is bordered by the Ottawa Centre, Nepean and Kanata-Carleton ridings, with the Ottawa River to the North. 

Ottawa West-Nepean is one of the city’s two ridings held by the NDP, with Chandra Pasma residing as the current MPP. She was elected in 2022, previously serving as an advisor to the federal NDP, taking over from her predecessor, Progressive Conservative Jeremy Roberts.

Pasma previously worked as a public policy researcher for the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), Citizens for Public Justice, as well as for Conservative MP Dave MacKenzie until 2006. 

For the provincial election this spring, she’s up against Sophie Andrew-Joiner, the candidate from the Green Party of Ontario. Andrew-Joiner is a former parliamentary assistant and community activist, as well as a longtime volunteer for the Green Party of Canada leader and MP Elizabeth May. 

The Conservative and NDP candidates for Ottawa West-Nepean have not yet been confirmed. 

Ottawa-Vanier (080)

With an area of 45 square kilometres, Ottawa-Vanier is the city’s second-smallest geographical riding, but home to 118,806. Lying within central Ottawa, Ottawa-Vanier is within the boundaries of the Ottawa River to the North, Highway No. 417 to the South, the Rideau Canal to the West and Blair Road and Highway No. 174 to the East. It includes Lowertown, the ByWard Market, part of the downtown core, Sandy Hill, Rideau, Vanier, Overbrook, Manor Park, Rockcliffe Park, Rothwell Heights, Gloucester and Cyrville.

The riding is held by Liberal Lucille Collard, who was elected in 2020 and previously worked as a lawyer. Prior to her election as MPP, she was a school trustee for Rideau-Vanier beginning in 2010 and was re-elected in 2014 and 2018. She won the Rideau-Vanier seat, taking over from Liberal Nathalie Des Rosiers, who represented the riding from 2016 to 2019.

At the time of publication, Collard’s only confirmed opponent is construction supervisor and foreman Christian Proulx from the Green Party. His educational background includes architectural technology and business administration as well as a plumbing and steam and gas fitter’s certificates. He previously ran as the Green candidate in the 2021 federal and 2022 provincial elections in Ottawa-Vanier.

– with files from the Canadian Press

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