A snap winter provincial election has been called, and change will come to Ottawa Centre when voters head to the polls on Feb. 27.
NDP MPP Joel Harden announced last year he wouldn’t be seeking re-election so he could run for the seat federally.
“I’m not the same person I was when I started this job in the summer of 2018. The people of Ottawa Centre have encouraged me, informed me, inspired me, and made me a better neighbour. I now value and appreciate others I had not known before,” said Harden in his last letter to constituents.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford called for the sudden election over a year sooner than needed. His reason? A stronger mandate is required to face US President Donald Trump, who is imposing 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods.
Locally, Catherine McKenney has been chosen as the NDP candidate in Ottawa Centre. The Liberals are running Thomas Simpson, and Simon Beckett is running for the Green Party. Scott Healey, who ran for the Progressive Conservatives in 2022, will be their candidate again. KT was unable to reach him for comment ahead of publication. Answers with the other candidates have been edited for length and clarity.
Catherine McKenney – NDP
Background: McKenney is no stranger to politics. They were formerly the city councillor in Somerset Ward for eight years and ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2022. The following year, McKenney co-founded CitySHAPES non-profit organization to address “climate change, active transportation, transit, affordable housing and ending chronic homelessness.“
Housing: “I want to see housing made affordable for people. That also includes ensuring we have good rent control. An affordable place for someone to live on a low income is not more than 30 per cent of their income. Some people spend 50-70 per cent of their income on housing. The definition of affordable housing needs to change. It currently looks at the median income for the neighbourhood. That can be a pretty high income in a place like Ottawa.”
Public transit: “A 50/50 cost sharing for transit would be a game-changer for this city. That allows the city of Ottawa to keep transit fares stable, hopefully reduce overtime, and it allows for fares to be greatly reduced. It means we aren’t continuing to cut 30,000 hours from our transit system everyday. The city needs to stop what is a downward spiral in transit. We have increasing transit fares, which has been happening since at least 2010 when we saw ridership start to decrease.”
Social service issues: “We’ve got overcrowded emergency rooms and underfunded paramedics. We’ve got a consumption and treatment centre at Somerset West that this government is threatening to shutter in March. The result is that people who are living with addiction during this opioid poisoning crisis will be very unsafe. You will have paramedics responding to overdoses, and those paramedics will be bringing people to emergency rooms. It makes the whole system less stable and unable to respond.”
Thomas Simpson – Liberal
Background: Just days before the election, Simpson was elected as the Liberal Party candidate for Ottawa Centre. He previously worked as a policy officer at the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and, more recently, held various roles at the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB), where he currently serves as its vice president.
Affordability and healthcare: “There is no denying people are worse off today than they were seven years ago. The Liberals have put out an affordability plan for people. It would remove tax from heating and hydro bills. It would bring relief so they can use their hard-earned dollars for other things they must pay for. I was very proud of Liberal Party leader Bonnie Crombie’s recent announcement that has seen the removal of development charges and using the province to help fund city investment. It would help first-time home buyers and seniors looking to make purchases or downsize and make it more affordable for them.”
Public transit: “Due to insufficient funding coming from the province, it’s only added to people’s lack of trust in our public transit system here. One thing I will continue to advocate for is we need to unload our LRT system to the province and take it off the city’s books so they can focus on buses. We can ensure OC Transpo staff can still stay employed. What you would see by doing that is that the provincial investment would fund expansions and one day use those terminus hubs for provincial transit. I’d like to one day see an Eastern Ontario transit line like GoTransit in the Greater Toronto area.”
Simon Beckett – Green
Background: Beckett is a Sandy Hill resident and local business owner. He’s run the Pivot Turn Property Management firm for almost four years. However, the Green Party candidate also has a creative side as a choreographer and dance professional.
Climate policy: “The one thing I’m looking at right now that is affecting me is climate change’s impact on the community where I live. This is the first time I have been able to skate on the Rideau Canal in two years. There are economic issues to that. How many billions of dollars will we lose when people can’t come here to enjoy the canal because it can’t freeze? I used to live in Nepean near Greenbank and Baseline, and one of my first dance teaching jobs was at the Glebe Community Centre. I’d take the bus and then skate the canal down. It was a full Ottawa experience to skate to work on the canal. But it breaks my heart that people rarely have that opportunity to experience anymore.”
Development and housing: “We need to get more housing built. The reality is we need all hands on deck. The Ford government set targets, and we are nowhere near what they planned. At the same time, we can’t rely solely on the government because we need so much of it. We need a combined public and private sector approach. Inclusionary zoning is one of the biggest changes we could make where people can expand their houses. It will unlock a huge amount of potential. We can also look at lowering development fees. In the city of Toronto, it costs $130,000 for a single unit. Ottawa is about $90,000 for a unit. Never mind the time it takes to process. There is too much bureaucracy at play.”