Vote 2019: Markham-Unionville riding profile

What you need to know about the Markham-Unionville riding for the federal election

Yorkregion.com
Sept. 4, 2019
Amanda Persico

THE MARKHAM-UNIONVILLE RIDING:

The riding was established in 2003 and was re-aligned prior to the 2015 federal election, establishing the new riding of Markham-Thornhill to the south.

The current Markham-Unionville riding extends to the Markham -- Whitchurch-Stouffville boundary to the north, Hwy. 48 and McCowan Road to the east, Hwy. 407 to south and Hwy. 404 to the west.

The federal riding is home to about 125,000 residents and about 83,000 eligible voters, with the majority of whom are being Asian.

BACKGROUND:

Voter turnout for the Markham-Unionville riding in 2015 was about 61 percent, lower than the national turnout of about 68.5 per cent.

Markham-Unionville is currently represented by Conservative MP Bob Saroya.

Prior to the 2015 election, the riding was represented by Liberal MP John McCallum, having been elected in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2011.

THE RACE:

Bob Saroya -- Conservative Party of Canada

Bob Saroya was elected as the Conservative MP for Markham-Unionville in 2015 with close to 50 per cent of the vote. Saroya was one of three Conservative MPs voted in in York Region in the 2015 federal election.

Saroya was born in India and immigrated to Canada more than 40 years ago. He went on to become a corporate director for a multi-billion-dollar Canadian company.

He first ran for office in 2008.

Elvin Kao -- Green Party of Canada

Elvin Kao was born and raised in Markham to first-generation parents. Growing up in an entrepreneurial family, Kao values the importance of small businesses and community.

Kao graduated from the University of Waterloo with a Bachleor of Mathematics and is now a data analytics manager, believing in fact-based and data-driven approaches to problem solving.