TORONTO – York Centre: This is another constituency whose demographic makeup suggests a pronounced electoral battle. It is also the location (still) of the former Canadian Military Base (De Havilland), although reduced in geographic size as much of the land continues to be converted to housing. Once a manufacturing hub essentially serving the interests of Canada’s military, pharmaceutical and petroleum refinery related industries, today it represents one of the many growing enterprises geared to agrifood and service industries.
A population which until the first decade of this twenty first century reflected a concentration of residents in the main of Italian and Jewish roots, as of Census 2021, manifests a much greater diversity of ethnicities.
The census does not identify origins as per citizenship, but in the pie chart, the Italian demographic is likely the one with the greatest percentage of eligible voters, given its longevity in the country and the likelihood that it would have met the residency requirements to satisfy eligibility for citizenship. An important consideration given the relatively low turn-out at the last provincial election (43%).
Electoral races have traditionally featured a two-party battle between PCs and OLP. The PC are represented by incumbent MPP, Michael Kerzner, who is also the current Solicitor General of Ontario. The OLP candidate is businessman and former Justice of the Peace, Sam Nestico. The NDP (as of Feb 7) had not yet nominated their candidate.
Article, researches and graphics by Priscilla Pajdo, funded by Heritage Canada’s Intership Program (map: Elections Ontario)
