Toronto, Mississauga and Brampton are among Canada’s most diverse cities, but how closely do their municipal councils reflect the communities they represent?
As voters prepare for the Oct. 26 municipal elections, New Canadian Media has examined the barriers to political representation in these three major cities.
The series explored the challenges facing immigrant and visible minority candidates; the advantages enjoyed by incumbents; the role of campaign fundraising; and debates over the use of languages other than English to reach voters. It has also looked at whether public transit systems are meeting the needs of immigrant communities.
Voter participation remains a concern. In Ontario’s 2022 municipal elections, participation fell to a historic low of 32.9 per cent, according to the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO).
Toronto, Mississauga, and Brampton are reporting increased advance voting numbers, although that may not translate into a higher overall voter turnout.
In its Turn up the Turnout report, the AMO suggests the shrinking of the local media environment has had far-reaching impacts on voter participation and turnout.
As part of this coverage, NCM reporter Rodrigo Huerta Aguirre created an interactive map to help readers explore the relationship between local demographics, elected representatives and voter participation.
The map below shows municipal election results from 2022 and subsequent byelections, along with information on councillors, ward demographics drawn from the 2021 census and voter turnout in Toronto, Mississauga and Brampton.
These details offer a closer look at the communities that municipal councils represent, and the residents who participate in choosing them.
The map reveals striking differences between wards, even within the same city. In Mississauga, immigrants made up nearly 60 per cent of residents in Wards 4 and 6 according to the 2021 census. In Wards 1 and 2, immigrants accounted for one third of the population.
Voter participation varied widely across Toronto in 2022, with turnout reaching 38 per cent in Parkdale–High Park but falling to 22 per cent in Humber River–Black Creek.
By placing these demographic figures next to the names and photographs of elected representatives, the map shows how closely municipal councils reflect the communities they serve. The differences in voter participation also raise broader questions about political representation and the barriers to participation explored in NCM’s election coverage.
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Rodrigo Huerta Aguirre, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, New Canadian Media.