Bonnie Crombie fails to win seat at Queen's Park as Mississauga stays blue

After a $189 million early election in the dead of winter, it will be business as usual for Mississauga for the next four years as Ontario’s PCs once again swept all six of the city’s ridings Thursday. 

Following a condensed campaign period a year ahead of schedule, Ontarians have voted to keep Doug Ford’s majority PC government for another term. The NDP will remain the Official Opposition. 

Unofficial results show the Ontario Liberal Party winning 14 seats, enough for Official Party status at Queen’s Park, marking a significant victory for new leader Bonnie Crombie. But the victory was bittersweet for her as she was unable to secure a seat of her own inside the legislature. Crombie lost to PC opponent Silvia Gualtieri, the mother-in-law of Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown and sister of PC incumbent in Mississauga—Lakeshore Rudy Cuzzetto. As previously reported by The Pointer, Brown appeared to be using City resources to assist with her campaign. 

The candidates were vying to fill the empty seat in the Mississauga East—Cooksville riding, which had been without an incumbent after Kaleed Rasheed resigned from the PC Party after giving incorrect information to Ontario’s Integrity Commissioner during the investigation into the Greenbelt scandal.

As former mayor of Mississauga, Crombie won the 2022 municipal election with over 78 percent of the vote but her popularity did not transfer into victory Thursday.

(Bonnie Crombie/X) 

Gualtieri will now be the new face of Mississauga East—Cooksville, obtaining 46.46 percent of the vote next to Crombie’s 43.06 percent, unofficial results show. The PCs have held the riding since 2018. She has longstanding ties to the PCs, previously serving as a campaign manager and as fundraising chair for the Party, and as president of the Mississauga—Lakeshore PC Riding Association. She has also worked as an office manager for her family's insurance business. 

While Crombie avoided getting caught up in the personal dynamics of the riding’s race, maintaining that beating Ford was her priority, questions have been raised around Gualtieri’s close connections to Brown after photographs and first-hand accounts shared with The Pointer suggested that City of Brampton staff were used to help the PC candidate in her campaign. Crombie, who admitted she did not have any information on the matter, previously told The Pointer that an investigation into the possible use of City resources in the race should be launched, if there is evidence. 

Silvia Gualtieri at a campaign event earlier this month.

(Silvia Gualtieri/X) 

Though Crombie did not win a seat, the return to official Party status means the Liberals will gain funding and other privileges at Queen’s Park.

“People counted us out. They said the Ontario Liberal Party was dead. Tonight, you proved them wrong. The Ontario Liberal Party is back to official party status and that’s a big milestone,” Crombie told supporters on Thursday night. “This is a building block for us. It is momentum that we can continue to push forward and to grow… so let's celebrate coming back to party status so that tomorrow we can get back to work making sure those other guys do their jobs.”

Crombie, who won the Party’s leadership in December 2023, quickly shut down speculation on Thursday evening that she would step down as Liberal leader. 

“I commit to you that I will stay on as Ontario Liberal Leader so that I can keep fighting for you.” 

Similar to the close race in Mississauga East—Cooksville, the Liberals also came close in Mississauga—Erin Mills.  

Unofficial results show PC incumbent Sheref Sabawy holding onto the riding by a mere 20 votes (44.25 percent) with Liberal candidate Qasir Dar receiving 44.20 percent. According to Elections Ontario, an application for a recount must be made for an electoral district if the difference between the number of votes cast for the candidate with the largest number of votes and the candidate with the next largest number is less than 25.

Nina Tangri will continue to represent Mississauga—Streetsville, winning 47.72 percent of the vote in the riding. Liberal candidate Jill Promoli came second with 43.15 percent. As the Mississauga—Streetsville representative since 2018, Tangri has served in several roles with the PCs, including associate minister of small business and red tape reduction, associate housing minister and most recently associate minister of small business.

PC incumbent Deepak Anand will represent Mississauga—Malton for a third term after receiving 50.92 percent of the vote, well above the second place Liberal candidate with 38.74 percent. During his last term, Anand worked as a parliamentary assistant to the finance minister and a parliamentary assistant to the associate minister of small business. 

Despite facing widespread criticism for remaining largely silent on the PCs ministerial zoning order for Mississauga's Lakeview Village development, Mississauga—Lakeshore PC incumbent Rudy Cuzzetto has managed to hold on to his seat, receiving 47.49 percent of the vote in what appeared to be a tight race against Liberal candidate Elizabeth Mendes, who trailed closely behind with 43.77 percent of the vote. Cuzzetto, who was first elected in 2018, has served as a member of several standing committees and has acted as parliamentary assistant to the energy minister since March 2024. 

Mississauga Centre’s PC incumbent Natalia Kusendova-Bashta earned 46.92 percent of the riding’s vote to return to Queen’s Park. She was elected in 2018 and has been minister of long-term care since June 2024. 

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Twitter: @mcpaigepeacock

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