Hastings—Lennox and Addington

Hastings—Lennox and Addington covers a vast stretch of rural and small-town eastern Ontario, running from the north shore of Lake Ontario near Napanee through the agricultural heartland of the Quinte region and northward into the Canadian Shield country around Madoc, Bancroft, and the Hastings Highlands. The riding includes portions of the Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory and the northern section of Belleville above Highway 401. Created in the 2012 redistribution, it drew territory from the former ridings of Prince Edward—Hastings and Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington.

Candidates

Mike Bossio (Liberal) grew up in Madoc, studied philosophy at York University, and returned to Tyendinaga Township in 1994 with his wife Irene to raise their family. He operated a professional recruitment business since 1989, specializing in the telecommunications sector. His community activism included chairing the Concerned Citizens of Tyendinaga and Environs during a fifteen-year campaign that successfully blocked a major landfill proposal on fractured limestone.

Daryl Kramp (Conservative) was the most experienced politician in the field, having served as MP for Prince Edward—Hastings from 2004 to 2015 after an earlier career as an Ontario Provincial Police investigator. Before federal politics, he served as a municipal councillor and deputy reeve in Madoc.

Betty Bannon (NDP) of Foxboro brought nearly four decades of experience with the Canada Revenue Agency and served twelve years as national president of the Union of Taxation Employees.

Cam Mather (Green Party) ran as the Green candidate, advocating for rural sustainability and environmental stewardship.

About the Riding

The riding's economy rests on a mix of agriculture, tourism, forestry, and small-scale manufacturing. The Quinte region's fertile farmland supports dairy, beef, and cash crop operations, while the northern reaches of the riding attract outdoor recreation visitors to lakes, trails, and provincial parks in the Shield country. Canadian Forces Base Trenton, located just outside the riding boundary in neighbouring Bay of Quinte, is a significant regional employer, and many military families live within the riding. Federal issues in the 2015 campaign centred on rural broadband connectivity, infrastructure funding for aging bridges and municipal roads, support for small-town hospitals, and the economic prospects of resource-dependent northern communities. The contest between Bossio and Kramp was closely watched as a test of whether the Liberal wave sweeping urban Ontario could reach into traditionally Conservative rural territory.