Brampton Municipal Election and What Happened
On October 24th, municipal elections were held in Ontario, four years after the last election. Mayors and councillors ran for their municipalities, including in Brampton. In municipal elections, citizens vote for a mayor, city councillor, regional councillor, and school board trustee.
In Brampton, there are 10 wards and 5 city councillors that represent 2 wards each. The map below shows which ward a Bramptonian is in based on their residence. These elected councillors are responsible for representing and advocating for the interests of the public by developing and evaluating policies for the municipality. The mayor is the head of the council and acts as the “Chief Executive Officer” of the municipality. Their responsibilities include presiding over council meetings, representing municipality in official events/meetings. Bramptonians also elect a regional councillor to represent them on the Peel regional council.
Candidates in mayoral and councillor races are not affiliated with political parties. This makes it more difficult to understand what each candidate stands for. Here is a brief summary of some of the mayoral candidates’ platforms.
Patrick Brown
Resolve issues with traffic and gridlock. Possiblyworking with a citizen group named “Friends of Transit”, to implement helpful plans for transit routes.
“Sell” Brampton as a good place to invest by implementing an aggressive economy and freezing property taxes.
Create more affordable housing units through a streamlined approvals process for new home construction. Also encourage fair and thoughtful development in laws concerning rented housing, basement apartments and in-law suites.
Consult residents on suggestions to keep the city safer.
Hire more front line officers, implement affordable recreation programs, and strengthen the city’s Crisis Outreach and Support Team.
Nikki Kaur
Make the city safer, cleaner, and more respectful towards taxpayers/citizens
Foster entrepreneurship, creativity, and unity to develop Brampton’s infrastructure and culture.
Demonstrate accountability, transparency, and integrity in the Mayor’s office inspite the previous allegations and scandals that have occured.
Bob Singh
End corruption at city hall by developing an open bidding and tendering process for city contracts and “fixing” hiring processes for city officials. Unite the city council for a cooperative government.
Tackle crime in our communities by lobbying for police projects and requesting more police stations from the Ontario government. Add traffic cameras on major roads to reduce dangerous driving and expand Community Safety Zones.
Deliver basic and major city services. For example, address the backlog in city building permit delays, improve water drainage, continue city-funded upgrades to Peel Memorial Hospital, and address “funding gap and delays in transit upgrades”.
The election was held on October 24 and the results were released by the next day. Patrick Brown won the mayoral race by a landslide. Rowena Santos (Regional Councilor)/Paul Vincente (City councilor) won for Wards 1 & 5, Navjit Brar (Regional Councilor)/Michael Palleschi (City Councilor) won for Wards 2 & 6, Dennis Keenan (Regional Councilor)/Martin Medeiros (City Councilor) won for Wards 3 & 4, Rod Power (Regional Councilor)/Pat Fortini (City Councilor) won for Wards 7 & 8, and Harkirat Singh (Regional Councilor)/Gurpartap Toor (City Councilor) won for Wards 9 & 10.
Only 84 919 votes were cast in the mayoral race, out of a potential 354 844 votes. This is the worst voter turnout for Brampton on record. Only about 24% of eligible voters cast a ballot. The non-voters may have avoided the polls because of voter fatigue, the non-partisan nature of local candidates, and the perception that the race was not competitive.The timing of the election may also have been a problem. Brampton has a large population of Indian immigrants, who may have been unavailable during voting periods because of Diwali and Brandi Chor Divas celebrations.
Studies from a political scientist, Lydia Miljan of University of Windsor, recommend the addition of political party affiliation at the local level to encourage involvement. Other suggestions include smaller wards, longer election campaign periods, online voting accessibility, and public financing for candidates.
Overall, this election has not only been for citizens to exercise their voting right, but also for citizens and future voters alike to use this learning opportunity to recognize the importance of elections, what they mean, and how they affect us. Thank you for reading this article, hope you learned something and remember this for 2026!
Citations
“Ontario Municipal Election 2022: Brampton Results - Toronto | Globalnews.ca.” Global News, globalnews.ca/news/9219095/brampton-municipal-election-results-2022/. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
“Municipal Election.” Www.brampton.ca, www.brampton.ca/en/city-hall/election/Pages/Welcome.aspx. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
“How Local Government Works | AMO.” Www.amo.on.ca, www.amo.on.ca/about-us/municipal-101/how-local-government-works. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
Ontario.ca, 2021, www.ontario.ca/document/ontario-municipal-councillors-guide/1-role-council-councillor-and-staff#section-0. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
“Where Were the Voters? Low Ontario Turnout Caused by Fatigue and Non-Competitive Race: Experts.” CBC, 25 Oct. 2022, www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-election-low-voter-turnout-1.6629007. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
“MEET the CANDIDATES: Who’s Running for Mayor in Brampton?” BramptonGuardian.com, www.bramptonguardian.com/news-story/10731849-meet-the-candidates-who-s-running-for-mayor-in-brampton-/. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
“Elect Bob Dosanjh Singh for Mayor of Brampton.” Bobformayor.ca, bobformayor.ca/. Accessed 3 Nov. 2022. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
“Nikki Kaur | for Mayor. For You.” Nikkikaur.ca, nikkikaur.ca/. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
“Less than 25% of Eligible Voters Cast Ballots in Brampton and Mississauga Elections | Insauga.” Insauga | Local Online News, 25 Oct. 2022, www.insauga.com/less-than-25-of-eligible-voters-cast-ballots-in-brampton-and-mississauga-elections/. Accessed 26 Oct. 2022.
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