FALLOUT FROM THE RECENT PROVINCIAL ELECTION

 We are going to miss you, Jill!

By Stephen Weir

The votes have been tallied, the seats in the Ontario Legislature have been assigned, and the provincial parliament is set to resume at the end of this month.While much of the provincial news these days revolves around Trump’s tariffs, one important piece of Caribbean-Canadian election news has not received much attention: Dominican-Canadian Jill Andrew has lost her seat. Andrew’s defeat in Toronto–St. Paul’s, after serving eight years as an NDP MPP, returns the riding to the Liberals.Andrew finished second in the race with 13,524 votes, while newly elected Liberal MPP Stephanie Smyth secured victory with 17,421 votes. Progressive Conservative candidate Riley Braunstein, a self-described “leader in stakeholder relations and government operations,” placed third.In 2018, Andrew made history as the first queer Black MPP elected to the Ontario Legislature. At the time of the election call, she was the Official Opposition Critic for Culture, Heritage, and Women’s Issues and a founding member of the NDP Black Caucus. She has been a strong advocate at Queen’s Park for increased funding for the Toronto Caribbean Carnival and has actively participated in the annual midnight August 1st Underground Railroad Ride and Emancipation Day celebrations in Toronto.A certified child and youth worker, teacher, and equity advocate, Andrew co-founded Body Confidence Canada and is a community co-owner of Glad Day Bookshop in Toronto.Shortly after conceding defeat, Andrew took to Twitter to congratulate newcomer Stephanie Smyth."Stephanie, congrats! You are now responsible for our unique riding, which deserves real affordable housing, better access to public health care, education, transit, and more. We also need someone who will stand with compassion for all our groups—not just the loudest. I wish you good luck.”Stephanie Smyth, a 61-year-old first-time political candidate, is well known in Toronto as a veteran journalist. She worked in radio and television for decades, serving as an anchor and managing editor at CP24 for nearly 15 years, from 2008 to 2022. She has been married to Paul Cook, managing editor and morning anchor at 680 News, since 2007. Each has two children from previous marriages.Why did Smyth win? The Canadian Jewish News reported just before the election that "Ontario NDP stalwart Jill Andrew’s re-election bid is up against strategic Jewish community support for Stephanie Smyth.”Although Andrew has publicly supported the Jewish community, just before the election was called, she was removed from the Legislature for wearing a keffiyeh.Smyth’s first message to the downtown St. Paul’s riding was optimistic and forward-looking.

“This campaign was about listening to your concerns and offering real solutions to make life better,” she said.