While election results are still pending, and polls in Simcoe-Grey have just closed at 9 p.m. tonight (June 2), it's a sure thing Simcoe-Grey will have a different MPP for the first time in 32 years.
Incumbent Jim Wilson, who was elected in 1990, belonged to the Progressive Conservative (PC) party for all but his final term. While elected on June 7, 2018 with 34,094 votes as a progressive conservative. Wilson left the legislature in November 2018, confirming he had been in a rehab program for alcoholism. He also left the Conservative caucus. When he returned in February 2019, he did so as an independent and has remained so.
He announced his retirement in September 2020, opening up the local PC race for the first time since he secured the local candidacy for the 1990 election.
A local race began with four candidates vying for the PC nomination. Instead of a party vote, then-premier Doug Ford announced he had selected Collingwood Mayor Brian Saunderson as the PC candidate for Simcoe-Grey. Saunderson was one of the four nominees.
Beginning April 20, Saunderson took a leave from his mayor's chair to run in the provincial election.
There were seven candidates running for MPP in Simcoe-Grey, including Saunderson for the PCs, Ted Crysler for the Liberals, Keith Nunn for NDP, Allan Kuhn for the Green Party, David Ghobrial for New Blue Party, Billy Gordon for None of the Above Party, and Rodney Sacrey for the Ontario Party.
Since 1937, Collingwood – under three different ridings: Simcoe-Grey, Simcoe West, and Dufferin Simcoe – has had three MPPs, all PCs, and they were Jim Wilson, George McCague, and Wally Downer.
In the previous Ontario election (June 7, 2018) Wilson was elected with 34,094 votes in Simcoe-Grey (56 per cent). NDP candidate David Matthews was second in the riding with 13,444 votes. Dan Hambly (Liberal) was third with 8,771 and Jesseca Perry (Green) was fourth with 4,192. John Wright, the Libertarian candidate, won 453 votes.
Ontario-wide, the PCs won 76 seats (2.3 million votes), the NDP won 40 seats (1.9 million votes), the Liberals won seven seats (1.1 million votes), and the Green Party won one seat (263,000 votes).
The Green Party leader Mike Schreiner won his seat in Guelph and became the first provincial Green candidate elected in Ontario.
Polls closed in Simcoe-Grey at 9 p.m. on June 2, 2022. Election results will be posted live at collingwoodtoday.ca/2022-ontario-votes.
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