Facts, figures, and results
On June 12, 52.1 per cent of eligible Ontarians voiced their opinion and expressed their democratic right to vote. This was the first increase in voter turnout in two decades, surpassing the 2011 turnout of 48.2 per cent. The increase was a pleasant surprise, as numbers for the advanced voting were down in comparison to the previous election. In Guelph, the voter turnout increased to 56.5 per cent, up from the 50.3 per cent in 2011.
Most polls and voters thought this would be a tight race between the Liberals and Conservatives. However, after the ballots were tallied, the Liberal party won a majority with 58 seats, for which they only needed 54. The Progressive Conservatives came out with 28 seats, the NDP with 21, and the Green Party with none. Initially, the Liberals had 59 seats, but after a data entry error was discovered in the Thornhill, the Progressive Conservative candidate took the riding by 85 votes.
In Guelph, Liberal incumbent, Liz Sandals won with 41.3 per cent of the popular vote. Progressive Conservative candidate Anthony MacDonald came out with 21.1 per cent, while Green Party leader Mike Schreiner received 19.2 per cent, NDP candidate James Gordon 17.7 per cent, Communist candidate Juanita Burnett 0.4 per cent, and Libertarian candidate Blair Smythe with 0.3 per cent. This is the fourth consecutive win for Sandals.
Leaders for the NDP, Progressive Conservative, and Liberal parties won their seats, but Schreiner did not win his. However, he did receive the most votes of all the “non-major party” leaders and he doubled the number of the Green Party’s votes in Guelph from the 2011 election.
Shortly after the Liberal majority was declared, Progressive Conservative leader Tim Hudak announced that he would be stepping down. Andrea Horwath, leader of the NDP, and Schreiner will continue in their positions.
The election was a win for more than just the Liberals, as Kathleen Wynne became the first elected female Premiere of Ontario. The province also elected a record number of 38 women MPPs. The election garnered attention outside of Ontario from Star Trek and Social Media icon George Takei, who congratulated Ontario for electing the first openly LGBQT head of government. Takei commended Ontarians for Wynne’s sexuality remaining a non-issue throughout the campaign period.
In her victory speech on election night, Wynne congratulated the other leaders and thanked all of her family, friends, supporters, volunteers, and the voters of Ontario. She was quick to add that the government would be back to business in twenty days , working in the legislature by July 2nd.
In total this election cost Ontarians 90 million dollars, but Elections Ontario employed over 70,000 citizens. Elections Ontario significantly improved their information and resources for Ontarians through their website, social media, brochures, and online and TV advertisements. On Election Day, they were also busy monitoring social media sites, primarily Twitter, as several voters were tweeting and posting photos of their ballots. While signs did say to turn off all electronic devices, they did not explicitly say “no photos or posting to social media.” In this age of social media and “the selfie,” Elections Ontario may have to clarify some of its signs. But with a Liberal majority government in power, they have a good four years to work on it.