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<\/p>\n\n By Benjamin Steeves \u2013 Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Oct 22, 2026
\n – Mississauga, Brampton\n <\/p>\n
In the weeks leading up to Mississauga\u2019s municipal election, the name Fonseca was difficult to miss in and around Ward 3. It was on giant campaign-style electronic billboards, it was on stretched out posters that covered an entire side of bus shelters and it was plastered across expensive glossy magazine-style flyers mailed to households across parts of the city.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The problem is, the marketing and promotional material flooding the area did not belong to incumbent councillor Chris Fonseca; it was plastered across neighbourhoods by her husband, Mississauga East\u2014Cooksville Liberal Member of Parliament Peter Fonseca.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The unusual overlap did not end there. Peter Fonseca\u2019s advertisements, which critics allege were timed exactly with his wife\u2019s municipal campaign, address issues that are almost exactly aligned with her municipal election campaign, issues more commonly associated with City Hall than Parliament Hill.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Mississauga Liberal MP Peter Fonseca went on a huge advertising blitz right outside his wife Chris Fonseca\u2019s council ward, as she was about to start campaigning ahead of the municipal election. The issues Peter Fonseca highlighted in his ads such as lower taxes, safer neighbourhoods, transit and local infrastructure, are almost exactly aligned with his wife\u2019s campaign platform, and are more closely associated with City Hall matters than what federal MPs deal with. (Photos supplied)<\/p>\n
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\u201cI find it completely unbalances what should be a fair playing field because he gets to start advertising way before, like weeks before I was able to put up a single sign,\u201d Ward 3 candidate Kim Pines, who is running against Chris Fonseca, told The Pointer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Pines believes the placements of the advertisements and flyers mailed out by Peter Fonseca and paid for by federal taxpayers during the municipal election campaign is no coincidence, creating challenges for Chris Fonseca\u2019s opponents that are difficult to overcome.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe timing is just like, half the year you don’t hear anything, and all of a sudden he’s dumping flyers, he’s door knocking, he’s on the digital billboards, he’s making robocalls. Where were you the last nine months?\u201d Pines questioned.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just think it’s slimy\u2026I feel it’s just like deliberate sabotage.\u201d<\/p>\n
A review of MP Peter Fonseca\u2019s public expense disclosures shows he spent far more for marketing and advertising in the period leading directly into his wife\u2019s election campaign, compared to previous periods.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His expenses incurred for marketing in the quarter that ended in March of this year, with advertisements placed throughout the municipal election period, totalled $113,594; compared to $1,256 the previous quarter, $0 the quarter before that, and $49,114 the quarter before that.<\/p>\n
An analysis of the placement of the outdoor ads, including large digital billboards on major thoroughfares and bus shelter advertisements, shows they were taken out immediately in and\u00a0around the area Peter Fonseca’s wife\u00a0represents.<\/p>\n
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A map highlights Peter Fonseca\u2019s federal riding in blue which includes all of Chris Fonseca\u2019s municipal ward marked in red. His bus shelter ads are heavily concentrated in her ward and electronic billboards are displayed on high visibility spots on major thoroughfares where drivers go in and out of her ward. (Supplied)<\/p>\n
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Peter Fonseca was asked about the heavy placement of his advertisements coinciding with his wife\u2019s municipal election campaign.<\/p>\n
\u201cAdvertising expenditures can vary based on the timing, scope and volume of communications, and my communications reflect my federal responsibilities,\u201d he responded via email on Thursday, October 22.<\/p>\n
He was asked to explain why he used the advertisements to address issues that directly align with his wife\u2019s campaign platform, such as lower taxes which has been a central focus of the Mississauga municipal election, transit and \u201clocal infrastructure\u201d among other key topics that have dominated Mississauga\u2019s local election and are more closely associated with municipal government than federal government.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy communications as Member of Parliament for Mississauga East\u2013Cooksville focus on issues that matter to residents, including affordability, seniors, housing, public safety, transit, infrastructure, and community spaces. These priorities are supported through federal initiatives such as the New Horizons for Seniors Program, the Building Communities Strong Fund, and other Government of Canada programs.<\/p>\n
“There are many tangible examples of investments in our community, including improvements to parks in all Wards across Mississauga East\u2013Cooksville. These projects demonstrate the importance of federal, provincial, and municipal governments working together and contributing funding to protect neighbourhoods, improve public spaces and strengthen our community. With the Building Communities Strong Fund, we look forward to supporting even more local infrastructure and community improvements in the years ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Mississauga Ward 3 councillor candiate Kim Pines who is also part of the Applewood Heights Residents\u2019 Association, wants to see more transparency in the way elections are run. She is concerned that her opponent, incumbent Chris Fonseca, and her husband, MP Peter Fonseca who also represents the area, use tax dollars to help each other during campaign time, creating an almost insurmountable advantage. (Alexis Wright\/The Pointer)<\/p>\n
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Chris Fonseca was asked about the overlap between her municipal campaign and the advertising blitz by her federal MP husband, Peter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI value the relationships we have built and believe our community benefits when municipal, provincial and federal representatives work together, including the MP and MPP who also represent Ward 3, while respecting their individual responsibilities,\u201d she responded via email on Thursday, October 22.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fact that they use and abuse the surname and she’s coasting 16 years based on the surname she carries is pathetic,\u201d Ward 3 councillor candidate Mendi Kabashi told The Pointer. \u201cWe’re paying for those Fonseca signs on the buses [those] are paid by taxpayers’ money. That’s a waste, and abuse of power that you have that is being given to you by the people.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe all know that it’s all about face and name recognition, and that’s what they have already worked on. They have designed a system that is meant to keep the same people in, because the only people they know, those are the only names they remember. It’s carefully well thought out, and meticulously organized so nobody else can get to that elected chair that they have used as furniture for way too long.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Mississauga Ward 3 councillor candidate Mendi Kabashi says the way Chris and Peter Fonseca use taxpayer dollars to promote each other, especially during campaign time, is an abuse of power and the public purse. (Supplied)<\/p>\n
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Former Ward 3 candidate Athina Tagidou, who came second to Fonseca in 2022, tried to get action on the way the couple uses their political advantages to help each other stay in office.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had brought it back then to the Integrity Commissioner for the federal government,\u201d she told The Pointer. \u201cThat’s what I was told to do, because the City of Mississauga said he (Peter) can do whatever he wants. He’s an elected official. I complained to Jeff Wright about this. He was then the city’s Transportation and Works Commissioner, and I complained to the mayor. They said they can’t do anything because he is an elected official, and he can promote himself at any time during his elected term. Then I went to the federal government, and they put in a case, and they came back that it was not a conflict of interest.\u201d<\/p>\n
She says the Fonsecas have created a political partnership that makes it virtually impossible for anyone else to win.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd how many times does a new candidate beat an incumbent? Very rare. So I had an incumbent, plus her husband, who was campaigning for her and promoting himself within the community. I was fighting against two incumbents, not one.\u201d<\/p>\n
She believes the reason Peter Fonseca has spent so much taxpayer money this municipal election to help his wife is because residents are growing frustrated.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey know that Chris Fonseca is losing support from her Ward 3 constituents. We put a lot of pressure on her with the [Bloor street] bike issue, and other issues as well that have to do with development. People are not happy with her, and I think this is why they’re putting additional pressure and more promotion of him and her within the community,\u201d Tagidou said.<\/p>\n
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Two pages from a glossy flyer sent to Mississauga residents by MP Peter Fonseca in September. Photos of his wife Chris Fonseca (circled) who is running for re-election in Ward 3 were heavily featured in her husband\u2019s taxpayer-funded promotional material sent out during her municipal election campaign. (Supplied)<\/p>\n
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Peter Fonseca was asked about his mailed flyers sent out throughout his wife\u2019s election campaign, as recently as four weeks ago. It featured about a dozen pictures of his wife.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy communications over the years have featured photographs with numerous elected officials. The flyer in question is consistent with this longstanding practice and includes several other elected officials and individuals, among them Mayoral candidates Dipika Damerla (Councillor Ward 7) and Carolyn Parrish (Mayor), MP Fares Al-Soud (Mississauga-Centre), Mississauga Councillors Fonseca (Ward 3) and Dasko (Ward 1), and MPPs Sheref Sabawy (Mississauga Erin Mills) and Deepak Anand (Mississauga Malton). Other communications have also featured numerous individuals participating in the current municipal elections, including Councillors representing wards within Mississauga East\u2013Cooksville. These communications should therefore be considered in their full context, rather than viewed in isolation, as they reflect a broader and longstanding approach to community engagement involving elected officials across all levels of government.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chris Fonseca was asked about her involvement as an agent for her husband Peter\u2019s previous election campaign public disclosures, which would have allowed her to see a range of information used in his campaign organization and strategy. She was asked why she used the name Christina Yaremczuk in the public disclosures that listed her as an agent who assisted her husband.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cChristina Yaremczuk is my maiden name, which I used before marriage and have continued to use in work dating back to the early 2000s, including election campaigns,\u201d she wrote in her emailed response. \u201cChris Fonseca is my married name and the name by which residents know me. I am proud of both names, which reflect my Ukrainian heritage and my family’s Portuguese heritage.\u201d<\/p>\n
Both Chris and Peter Fonseca were asked if they commingle their social media presence and whether this allows them to use taxpayer money to promote and brand each other.<\/p>\n
\u201cI will continue working on behalf of the great people of Mississauga East-Cooksville, connecting residents with federal programs, and working with all levels of government to build a stronger, safer, and more vibrant community,\u201d Peter Fonseca replied.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy focus remains on the residents of Ward 3 and all of Mississauga,\u201d Chris Fonseca responded. \u201cI am grateful for the trust and friendships built over the years and remain dedicated to serving our community with integrity, openness and hard work.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Email:\u00a0[email\u00a0protected]<\/a><\/p>\n At a time when vital public information is needed by everyone, The Pointer has taken down our paywall on all stories\u00a0to ensure every resident of Brampton, Mississauga and Niagara has access to the facts. For those who are able, we encourage you to consider a subscription. This will help us report on important public interest issues the community needs to know about now more than ever. You can register for a 30-day free trial\u00a0HERE<\/a>. Thereafter, The Pointer will charge $10 a month and you can cancel any time right on the website. Thank you<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Benjamin Steeves \u2013 Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Oct 22, 2026 – Mississauga, Brampton In the weeks leading…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":942962,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194297],"tags":[49,48,55405],"class_list":["post-942961","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mississauga","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-mississauga"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/942961","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=942961"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/942961\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/942962"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=942961"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=942961"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=942961"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}