Markham—Unionville

Markham—Unionville is a federal riding covering the central portion of the City of Markham in York Region. Its boundaries are defined by Highway 404 and the Highway 407 interchange to the southwest, McCowan Road and Bur Oak Road to the east, Highway 48 and the city's northern limits to the north, and the city's western boundary along Highway 404. The riding had a population of approximately 117,000 in 2021, making it one of the most densely populated suburban ridings in the Greater Toronto Area. The riding's demographics are striking: 66.6% Chinese, 12.1% white, 9.9% South Asian, 2.0% Black, and 1.4% Filipino. Yue (Cantonese) is the first language of 29.5% of residents, English of 28.4%, and Mandarin of 20.7%. Over half the population (51.2%) reports no religious affiliation.

Candidates

Paul Chiang (Liberal) * — Born in Karachi, Pakistan to Chinese parents in 1960, Chiang's family immigrated to Canada in 1976. He served as a police officer for 28 years across three forces—London Police Service, Durham Regional Police, and York Regional Police—retiring in 2020 as a sergeant. He served as a diversity officer in York Regional Police's Diversity and Cultural Resources Unit. He speaks English, Mandarin, Cantonese, Hubei, Hakka, Urdu, Hindi, and Punjabi.

Bob Saroya (Conservative) — Born in 1952, Saroya immigrated to Canada from India in 1974. He owned several restaurants and became a sales director with Pizza Pizza before entering politics. He ran unsuccessfully in 2008 and 2011 before winning the riding in 2015—the only candidate nationally to pick up a seat from the Liberals in their majority win that year. He served as MP until 2021.

Aftab Qureshi (NDP) — Qureshi owns and operates a driving school in Markham and also works as a real estate agent. He serves as Vice-Chairman of the Asian Community Council of Canada and is married with four children. He served as President of the Markham—Unionville NDP riding association.

Elvin Kao (Green Party) — Kao was raised in Markham—Unionville by first-generation Canadian parents and a large extended family of immigrants. He holds a Bachelor of Mathematics from the University of Waterloo and works as a data analytics manager. He joined the Green Party for its commitment to sustainability and evidence-based policy.

About the Riding

Markham—Unionville is centred on the historic village of Unionville, whose Main Street is a designated heritage conservation district under the Ontario Heritage Act. Founded in 1794, Unionville's heritage streetscape of 19th-century buildings now houses restaurants, art galleries, and retail shops, making it a popular destination for visitors and a source of civic pride. Beyond this heritage core, the riding is a modern suburban landscape of residential subdivisions, condominium towers, and commercial plazas.

The riding sits within Markham's technology corridor. Major employers in the broader Markham area include IBM Canada, AMD Technologies, Huawei Canada, and hundreds of smaller firms in software, IT services, and semiconductor design. The riding's residents are highly educated and many commute to employment centres in Toronto and across the GTA via Highway 404, Highway 407, and GO Transit.

Federal issues in 2021 included Canada–China relations—a matter of particular sensitivity given the riding's large Chinese Canadian population—housing affordability, immigration and family reunification policies, and support for small businesses recovering from the pandemic. The riding's ethnic Chinese-oriented commercial centres and cultural institutions give it a distinctive identity within the GTA. Markham—Unionville was one of the most closely contested ridings in the 2021 election, reflecting its history of swinging between Conservative and Liberal representation.