Province calls byelection in Thornhill

Vaughan Weekly
January 22, 2014
By Angela Gismondi

Candidates are gearing up for a byelection in Thornhill on Feb. 13.

On Wednesday, Jan. 14, Premier Kathleen Wynne announced two provincial byelections will be held next month - one in Thornhill and the other in Niagara Falls. The Thornhill byelection was called to fill a vacant seat left by Progressive Conservative (PC) MPP Peter Shurman who stepped down last month following controversy surrounding expense claims. Shurman decided to resign his seat after Ontario PC leader Tim Hudak removed Shurman from his finance critic post.

Sandra Yeung Racco has been nominated as the Liberal candidate in Thornhill. She plans to focus on transit, getting the Yonge subway line extended into York Region, creating jobs and strengthening the economy and healthcare.

Yeung Racco is president of the Thornhill Liberal Riding Association and has been Concord/Thornhill North councillor for the City of Vaughan since 2003.  Her husband Mario Racco held the MPP seat in Thornhill until he was defeated by Shurman in 2007. Shurman was then reelected in 2011.

Gila Martow will be the candidate running for the PC Party in Thornhill. Her nomination was made official Thursday after defeating Bruce McIntosh.

Martow, an optometrist who has lived in the riding for over 25 years, is the former president of the Thornhill Progressive Conservative Riding Association and the current president of the Beverley Glen Ratepayers Association. She is active in the community sitting on a number of boards and hosts her own show current issues on a local television station.

Martow is focused on job creation, finding solutions to gridlock and bringing transit to Thornhill that taxpayers want and need.

Green Party of Ontario leader Mike Schreiner announced Dr. Teresa Pun as the candidate in the Thornhill byelection last week. Pun was born in Hong Kong and raised in Toronto. As a doctor and a mother, she understands the impact of poverty on health. She currently practices allergy and clinical immunology in Richmond Hill and Toronto.

Pun also ran in the 2011 Manitoba provincial election.

The Green Party’s priorities include creating jobs for a twenty-first century economy, harnessing safe, affordable energy to power our communities, promoting access to quality, sustainable health care close to home, feeding our communities by championing local farms and delivering government that works for people.

The New Democrats held a nomination meeting Jan. 19 where Cindy Hackelberg was declared the Thornhill byelection candidate. Hackelberg is the NDP Thornhill Riding Association president and ran in the 2011 provincial election. Her focus is putting Ontarians needs first by improving public transit for commuters, bettering the education system and providing more resources in the healthcare system.

Byelection Day is Thursday, Feb. 13.