Progressive Conservatives hold onto seat in eastern Ontario byelection

The Progressive Conservatives have won a provincial byelection in eastern Ontario, retaining a seat previously held by a popular cabinet minister, though the result was much closer than the riding has seen in the past two elections.

Tyler Allsopp, a municipal councillor in Belleville, will now represent the Bay of Quinte at the legislature after winning Thursday’s byelection.

It was a race with a rapid turnaround, as Premier Doug Ford announced Allsopp as the Progressive Conservative candidate and called the byelection just five days after the seat became vacant.

Todd Smith, who was education minister at the time he resigned but had held several other cabinet portfolios including energy, represented the region through four elections. He won the last two in Bay of Quinte with nearly 50 per cent of the vote.

Allsopp’s margin of victory was not quite as wide _ capturing about 39 per cent of the vote _ but still decisive.

Ford congratulated Allsopp in a post on social media.

“The people of Bay of Quinte have sent a clear message tonight by electing a strong local champion who will fight the Liberal carbon tax and Bonnie Crombie’s plan to raise taxes,” the premier wrote.

Ford has charged that Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie supports the carbon tax and wants to raise taxes on gas and beer, but Crombie has said that is not true.

Crombie’s candidate in the byelection, Sean Kelly – a councillor alongside Allsopp in Belleville and a local radio broadcaster – finished second with about 33 per cent of the vote.

The NDP have placed second in the riding in the last two general elections, but on Thursday night candidate Amanda Robertson, a school board trustee, finished behind Kelly with about 23 per cent of the vote.

The Liberals trumpeted their second-place finish, saying it’s a signal they are the main alternative.

“We’ve been the underdogs since day one, yet the voters sent a clear message that we are the only party who can take on Doug Ford,” Crombie wrote in a statement.

NDP Leader Marit Stiles said she is proud of Robertson’s campaign.

“Amanda has inspired important and necessary conversations about the changes that people want to see in Bay of Quinte,” Stiles wrote in a statement.

The Progressive Conservatives did not make Allsopp available for an interview with The Canadian Press during the byelection campaign, but the press release announcing him as the candidate said he is a father of three, a small business owner, and co-founded various community initiatives.

Preliminary Elections Ontario figures show the voter turnout was over 38 per cent.