5 hours Ago By Lynn Saxberg
Liberal Anita Vandenbeld was well on her way to holding on to the Ottawa West-Nepean riding Monday night after campaigning against a slate of first-time candidates. With 109 of 251 polls reporting, Vandenbeld had secured 61.4 per cent of the vote, holding a 14,123-6,714 lead over the Conservatives’ Ryan Telford in second.
It will be the fourth victory for Vandenbeld, an expert on democracy and human rights who worked in more than 20 countries during her international development career. She coasted to her first victory in 2015 with more than 55 per cent of the vote, repeated the feat in 2019 with 45.6 per cent and again in 2021, though she lost about 1,700 (0.
5 per cent) votes in that election. This time around, she was quick to align herself with Liberal Leader Mark Carney, describing him as a “world-renowned economist who knows how to talk to world leaders,” and holding him up as the best person to fight Donald Trump’s unjustified tariffs. Vandenbeld leaned on her “experience and compassion” during the campaign, noting that she has continued to host a weekly coffee hour with constituents, which now takes place on Zoom.
She also makes time for 10-minute phone calls with any constituent on Friday afternoons, and pledged to continue to keep both channels of communication open to residents. Other issues underscored by Vandenbeld, 55, included housing, jobs and protecting the local environment. “I tend to pick one big project and then focus solely on that until it’s done,” she said in an interview.
This time, the main project she promised to pursue is a housing development on a plot of federal land across from the Queensway Carleton Hospital. She pledged to bring partners together to construct something that would combine long-term care, transitional housing for those leaving the hospital and housing for front-line health-care workers. She also promised to develop and protect good jobs, minimize public-service cuts and help young people get into the federal workforce.
In a riding that hugs the Ottawa River, roughly from Shirley’s Bay to the Kichi Zībī LRT station, the local environment was another top concern. Vandenbeld vowed to continue to work to protect green spaces, including Mud Lake and the greenbelt. She called for more consultation and conservation with the National Capital Commission, the Crown corporation that manages the urban shoreline and its parks, multi-use paths and scenic parkways.
Vandenbeld’s rivals included Telford, a single father of a teenage daughter whose career in the public service focused on national security. He did not participate in debates during the campaign, but promised to deal with the affordability crisis and stand up for the riding’s Jewish population in combating antisemitism. The NDP was represented by Josh Bizjak, a father of one and an NGO management professional who’s knowledgeable on labour issues, public policy and trade relations.
He pledged to better represent constituents while fighting for improved public services, affordability and economic measures to strengthen the country. Computer scientist Prashanta Dhakal, a father of one who’s married to a nurse, ran for the Green Party of Canada with a platform based on a broad view of sustainability that encompassed the economy, immigration and taxation systems, as well as the environment. His greatest moment during the campaign was a patient explanation of the impact of carbon dioxide to a climate skeptic during a candidates’ forum.
The other two candidates were Sean Mulligan of the Christian Heritage Party and People’s Party of Canada contender Glen Armstrong. [email protected] SEE MORE OTTAWA-AREA RESULTS Please check back as we update results live.
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