Carleton—Mississippi Mills

Carleton—Mississippi Mills is a sprawling riding on the western edge of the City of Ottawa, extending into Lanark County. It encompasses the former city of Kanata, the former townships of Goulbourn and West Carleton within Ottawa's municipal boundaries, and the Town of Mississippi Mills (comprising the former townships of Ramsay and Pakenham, including the town of Almonte and the village of Pakenham) in Lanark County. The riding stretches from Ottawa's suburban western fringe into the rural Ottawa Valley.

Candidates

Gordon O'Connor (Conservative) — Born in Toronto, O'Connor held a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Physics from Concordia University and a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from York University. He served over thirty years in the Canadian Army, rising to the rank of brigadier-general. At National Defence Headquarters, he served as Director-General of Land Force Development. After retiring from the military in 1994, he worked in public relations at Hill & Knowlton Canada and as a defence industry lobbyist for firms including General Dynamics and Airbus Military. First elected in the riding in 2004, O'Connor served as Minister of National Defence from 2006 to 2007 and Minister of National Revenue from 2007 to 2008 in the Harper cabinet. He sought a fourth term in 2011.

Karen McCrimmon (Liberal) — A retired lieutenant-colonel with thirty-one years of service in the Canadian Forces, McCrimmon was the first woman to serve as an air navigator in the Canadian military and the first woman to command a Canadian Forces flying squadron, taking command of 429 Transport Squadron in 1998. She completed a tour of duty in Afghanistan in 2004, where she coordinated NATO airlift operations, and later served as a Senior Staff Officer at NATO Air Headquarters in Ramstein, Germany. In 1995, she was made a member of the Order of Military Merit. The 2011 federal election was her first campaign for public office.

Erin Peters (NDP) and John Hogg (Green Party) also stood as candidates.

About the Riding

The riding's population was approximately 128,900 as of the 2006 census, with significant growth driven by suburban development in Kanata and Stittsville. Kanata, the largest community in the riding, was home to the Kanata North Technology Park, Canada's largest technology park. The area earned the nickname Silicon Valley North during the 1990s boom, when companies such as Nortel Networks, Mitel, and dozens of high-tech start-ups established operations along March Road. Nortel's collapse in 2009 displaced thousands of technology workers, though the local tech ecosystem proved resilient as smaller firms and new ventures absorbed much of the talent.

West of the suburban core, the riding transitions to rolling agricultural land, heritage villages, and Ottawa Valley communities. The Town of Mississippi Mills, centred on the historic mill town of Almonte along the Mississippi River, maintains a distinct small-town character with a vibrant arts community and heritage downtown. Carleton Place, just outside the riding's boundary, serves as a regional service centre for the area. Federal issues heading into 2011 included support for the technology sector in the wake of Nortel's bankruptcy, rural broadband access, agricultural policy, and the balance between suburban growth management and the preservation of the riding's rural character.