Progressive Conservative candidate Will Bouma has secured another term as MPP for Brantford-Brant, earning a decisive victory in the riding.
Bouma, who has represented the area since 2018, captured 47.3% of the vote, with 24,169 ballots cast in his favour.
Bouma’s win reinforces the riding’s support for Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative Party, which secured a historic third consecutive majority government.
Doug Ford’s decision to call a snap election 15 months early has resulted in a historic victory, securing his Progressive Conservative Party a third consecutive majority government — a feat unmatched at Queen’s Park since Premier Leslie Frost in 1959.
With 80 seats won or leading out of 124, Ford’s PCs secured a majority, though slightly smaller than the 83 seats they captured in 2022.
The Progressive Conservatives took 42.9 per cent of the popular vote in a campaign heavily focused on Ford’s positioning as a defender of Ontario’s economy against threatened 25 per cent tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump.
Marit Stiles and the New Democrats will remain the official opposition, winning 27 seats despite capturing only 18.73 per cent of the popular vote.
Bonnie Crombie’s Liberals regained official party status, winning 14 seats — up from nine at dissolution — and capturing 29.66 per cent of the popular vote. However, Crombie herself lost her bid in Mississauga East-Cooksville to Progressive Conservative candidate Silvia Gualtieri.
Bouma’s closest challenger, Harvey Bischof of the NDP, finished a distant second with 23.5% of the vote, while Liberal candidate Ron Fox placed third with 20.3%.
Born in the Netherlands, Will Bouma immigrated to Canada as a child, later earning a Bachelor of Science from the University of Waterloo and a degree from the Michigan College of Optometry.
After practicing optometry in Michigan for several years, he returned to Ontario in 2006 and established his own practice in St. George.
Bouma’s political career began at the municipal level, serving on the Brant County Council after being elected in 2014.
He later secured the Progressive Conservative nomination for Brantford-Brant in the 2018 provincial election, winning by a narrow margin of 635 votes against NDP candidate Alex Felsky.
He was re-elected in 2022 and has served as the Parliamentary Assistant to the Premier since 2019.
The Brantford-Brant riding, encompassing the City of Brantford, Brant County, and portions of Six Nations and Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, has historically been a closely contested district.
Previously held by Liberal MPP Dave Levac from 1999 to 2018, the seat shifted to the Progressive Conservatives with Bouma’s victory.
Green Party candidate Karleigh Csordas earned 5% of the vote, while Joshua Carron of the New Blue Party finished with 2.2%. Smaller parties, including the Libertarians, None of the Above Party, and Ontario Alliance, each earned less than 1% of the total vote.
This marks Bouma’s third consecutive victory in Brantford-Brant, solidifying the riding’s place as a Progressive Conservative stronghold.
Voter turnout in Brantford-Brant was approximately 53%, reflecting a modest engagement rate compared to previous elections.
Bouma will officially return to his duties at Queen’s Park when the new legislative session begins later this year.
