Charles Sousa Wins Mississauga-Lakeshore Seat in Byelection

Charles Sousa, former Ontario finance minister, has won the Mississauga-Lakeshore federal byelection as per the preliminary results. He is a member of the Liberal party and was present in Mississauga to announce his victory, as well as assure the people of his pragmatic approach. His closest competition was the Conservative party MP Ron Chhinzer.

At a campaign event in Mississauga, Charles Sousa announced his victory for the seat in Mississauga-Lakeshore. During his speech, he said, “As your voice in Ottawa, I want you to know that I am here to provide support, to work with you and the community, and to be pragmatic at finding the right solutions to those challenges that we face.” He added, “It is an honor to serve this big community and to join the team in Ottawa that shares those values.”

The preliminary results of the federal byelection show Sousa with 51.2 percent of the votes which is about 12,200 votes. He is a member of the Liberal party which has successfully held on to the Mississauga-Lakeshore region since 2015. His closest competition was Conservative party member Ron Chhinzer who secured 37.3 percent of votes. Chhinzer also congratulated Sousa on his campaign. Prime Minister Trudeau tweeted that he is looking forward to working with Sousa to deliver results to the people of Mississauga-Lakeshore.

It’s official: The winner of tonight’s by-election is @SousaCharles. I’m looking forward to working with him to deliver results for the people of Mississauga—Lakeshore – I know he’s ready, and there’s no doubt he’s up to the task. Congratulations, Charles.

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) December 13, 2022

Charles Sousa, prior to the election, shared that he feels confident and is getting a lot of positive feedback. “Nothing’s gonna change in Ottawa, regardless of the outcome of this election. So who do you want to fight for you and be there for you? I’m getting a lot of positive feedback.”

For the Conservative party, this was the first content under the leadership of Pierre Poilievre. The Mississauga-Lakeshore area would have been a strong seat for Poilievre as it would have improved his chances in future federal elections.

Final results in Monday’s contest will not be tabulated until local special ballots are added beginning December 14, Wednesday. With a voter turnout of 23,800, 12,194 votes went to Sousa, 8,873 to Chhinzer, 1,163 to NDP-New Democratic Party member Julia Kole, 763 to Green Party’s Mary Kidnew, and 286 to People’s Party – PPC member Khaled Al-Sudani.

Vineet Washington