Affordability, health care, education and soot stand out as the big issues at the top of mind for people living in east Hamilton and Stoney Creek, according to the candidates running in the upcoming byelection.
The byelection was called after former Progressive Conservative MPP Neil Lumsden retired on Aug. 4. from his Hamilton East—Stoney Creek seat.
Voters can also cast their ballot at their assigned voting location on election day, Sept. 3, when polls will be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. The riding runs from Kenilworth Avenue to just east of Fifty Road. Voting locations can be found at Elections Ontario online.
There are six candidates on the ballot:
Jeff Beattie, Ontario PC Party.Heather Curnew, Ontario Party.Wieslawa Derlatka, New Blue Party.Heino Doessing, Ontario Liberal Party.Pascale Marchand, Green Party of Ontario.Monique Taylor, Ontario New Democratic Party.
CBC News reached out to the candidates to ask about the issues they feel are most important to the community — and how they would plan to tackle them.
Here are the responses of those who replied. Responses have been edited for length and clarity and are published in alphabetic order of candidates’ names.
Jeff Beattie, Ontario PC
Jeff Beattie is a local business owner and has been a Hamilton city councillor for Ward 10 since 2022. He was also formerly a Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board Trustee in Wards 9 and 10 from 2014-2018.
Jeff Beattie is running in the Hamilton East—Stoney Creek provincial byelection for the Ontario PC Party. (Jeff Beattie/Facebook)
What are the top three issues facing the communities of this riding?
In the conversations I’m having with families, workers and businesses across Hamilton East–Stoney Creek, I hear the most about protecting local jobs and our economy, keeping life affordable for families, and making sure our community has the infrastructure and public services we need as we continue to grow.
The threat from President Trump’s tariffs and tariff threats is especially important to our community as the steel and manufacturing sectors targeted support thousands of local families.
At the same time, families are concerned about the cost of housing and everyday life, and they want governments to keep investing in the roads, transit, schools and health-care services our growing communities need.
How do you plan on addressing those issues?
As your MPP, I will continue to build on the progress our PC government has achieved here in Hamilton East–Stoney Creek.
We’ve introduced $12 million in cost savings for families each year, including making the gas tax cut permanent and scrapping HST on new homes.
At the same time, we’ve been there to stand up for steel, manufacturing, and local workers affected by U.S. tariffs, introducing Buy Ontario policies, implementing tax cuts, and providing relief for industries impacted by tariffs, helping businesses keep people working.
We’ve also seen important progress with projects like the new Confederation GO station, investments in Hamilton Health Sciences, and support for connecting more people to primary care. I will continue to build on these record investments and advocate for the infrastructure our community needs.
Heino Doessing, Ontario Liberal Party
Heino Doessing, who will be running for the Ontario Liberal Party, has worked in finance for more than a decade. Originally from Denmark, Doessing said he was a former municipal councillor in his community of Solrød from 2006-2006. He also previously ran for the seat in Hamilton East–Stoney Creek in the 2025 general election for the Ontario Liberals.
Heino Doessing is running for the Ontario Liberal Party in the Hamilton East—Stoney Creek byelection. (Heino Doessing/Facebook)
What are the top three issues facing the communities of this riding?
Families are facing higher costs. Meanwhile, Doug Ford has done a terrible job managing Ontario’s economy. Ontario created 60,000 fewer jobs in 2025 than in 2024 … After eight years of Doug Ford, Ontario’s economy is in no shape to withstand the challenges posed by Donald Trump’s tariffs.
In 2018, Doug Ford promised to end hallway health care. He broke that promise and has diverted more and more taxpayer dollars to for-profit care. Ontario has the lowest per-capita hospital spending in Canada, and nearly half of our hospitals are running deficits.
Our kids shouldn’t be coming home from the playground covered in soot. Good jobs and clean air are not opposites, we can have both. Ontario Liberals proved that when we closed Ontario’s coal-fired power plants.
How do you plan on addressing those issues?
[On affordability:] Cut taxes for the middle class and remove the HST from home heating and hydro, saving the average Ontario family $1,150 a year. Cut Ontario’s small business tax in half, saving businesses up to $17,800 every year. Ban algorithmic or personalized pricing for groceries.
[On health care:] An immediate $1-billion investment to stabilize hospitals, protect patient care, and make sure our health-care system is there when people need it most.
[On soot and clean air:] Continue the independent testing our community needs so families can have confidence in the air they breathe. Take a two-pronged approach to reducing pollution: real incentives to help our steel industry decarbonize, combined with real consequences when companies pollute or break the rules.
Pascale Marchand, Ontario Greens
Pascale Marchand is a community advocate and policy maker, who has worked in the office of Ward 4 city councillor, Tammy Hwang, for the last four years. Marchand previously ran as the Ontario Greens candidate in Hamilton East–Stoney Creek in the 2025 general election and ran municipally for East Hamilton’s Ward 4 in 2022.
Pascale Marchand is running for the Green Party of Ontario in the Hamilton East—Stoney Creek byelection. (Pascale Marchand/Facebook)
What are the top three issues facing the communities of this riding?
Clean air and water.
Affordable homes.
Underfunding in health care and education by the Ford government, while simultaneously wasting tax dollars on personal expenses and corporate handouts.
How do you plan on addressing those issues?
[On clean air and water:] Call on the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) to investigate the cumulative origin and effects of the black soot that blankets our community and implement a plan to stop it at the source. Fight for a moratorium on new AI data centre development until we properly study and regulate their effect on the environment, energy, health and jobs.
Fund faster, cheaper and more sustainable transportation options, from public transit to bike share. Protect our prime farmland by stopping sprawl and building more homes in existing neighbourhoods.
[On housing:] Fight for stronger protections for renters, including real rent control and vacancy control. Take a housing-first approach to ending homelessness by building more not-for-profit affordable and supportive homes.
[On education and health care:] Reverse the Ford government’s cuts to education so we can have smaller class sizes, hire more support staff and repair run-down schools. Fight for publicly funded, publicly delivered health care and hire more doctors, nurses, and PSWs.
Monique Taylor
Former Hamilton Mountain MPP Monique Taylor will be running for office again for the Ontario NDP — this time in Hamilton East—Stoney Creek. Taylor represented Hamilton Mountain from 2011 to 2025 when she did not seek re-election, opting instead to run federally.
Monique Taylor is running in the Hamilton East—Stoney Creek byelection for the Ontario NDP. (Monique Taylor/Facebook)
What are the top three issues facing the communities of this riding?
Affordability, jobs, and health care are the issues that are top of mind for families in Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, people are feeling the impacts of these every day. People haven’t stopped working hard, but all around them, life has become unaffordable. Regular expenses like groceries and childcare have become daily stressors. It shouldn’t be this way.
How do you plan on addressing those issues?
[On affordability:] Scrap the tax on groceries to put more money back in your pocket. Deliver truly affordable $10-a-day child care. Double ODSP and OW rates, expand support for seniors through a Seniors’ Home Safety Grant, and introduce a caregiver benefit.
[On good jobs:] Buy Ontario. Build Ontario. Make sure Ontario infrastructure is built with Ontario steel and Ontario workers … Support trade-exposed industries, strengthen local supply chains, and establish an Ontario Tariff Fund with strings attached – ensuring companies receiving public money keep good jobs right here at home.
[On health care:] Cut ER wait times by properly funding hospitals and hiring more doctors and nurses. No one deserves to receive treatment in a hallway or broom closet, and we’ll end hallway health care for everyone. Get faster access to specialists with a centralized referral system and less paperwork for family doctors. Legislate safe nurse-to-patient ratios to reduce burnout, retain experienced nurses and keep patients safer. End hospital parking fees for patients, visitors and staff.
CBC News did not receive responses from candidates Heather Curnew or Wieslawa Derlatka.