Scarborough Southwest

Scarborough Southwest is a culturally diverse riding along Toronto’s southeastern waterfront, encompassing neighbourhoods such as Birch Cliff, Cliffside, Cliffcrest, Oakridge, Ionview, Clairlea, and Birchmount Park, as well as the scenic Scarborough Bluffs. The riding is home to Canada’s largest Bangladeshi Canadian community, alongside significant Tamil, Filipino, Chinese, Caribbean, Eastern European, and East African populations. NDP incumbent Doly Begum had flipped this formerly safe Liberal seat in 2018, defeating 15-year incumbent Lorenzo Berardinetti to become the first Bangladeshi-Canadian elected to a legislative body in Canada. She entered 2022 as the clear favourite to hold the riding.

Candidates

Doly Begum (NDP) — Born in the Moulvibazar District of Bangladesh, Begum immigrated to Canada as a child and was raised in Scarborough, attending W. A. Porter Collegiate Institute. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Toronto and a Master of Arts in Development, Administration and Planning from University College London. Before her 2018 election, she served as Co-Chair of the Scarborough Health Coalition and Vice-Chair of the Warden Woods Community Centre. At 29, she had been the youngest member of her caucus when first elected.

Bret Snider (Progressive Conservative) — Snider ran as the PC candidate in Scarborough Southwest, seeking to flip the NDP-held riding for the governing party.

Lisa Patel (Liberal) — An entrepreneur and community advocate, Patel founded a real estate business and served as Immediate Past President of the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board. She campaigned on housing affordability and transit improvements, including an Eglinton East LRT extension from Kennedy to Malvern.

Cara Brideau (Green Party), Peter Naus (New Blue Party), Barbara Everatt (Ontario Party), James Mcnair (None of the Above Direct Democracy Party), and Michelle Parsons (Independent) also ran.

Local Issues

Healthcare access was a pressing concern in Scarborough Southwest. The broader Scarborough community had the second-lowest number of family physicians per capita in Ontario, with roughly 15 percent of residents lacking a primary care provider. Emergency departments at Scarborough’s three hospitals regularly operated at more than 200 percent of intended capacity, leading to long wait times. Rates of chronic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease were higher in Scarborough than in other parts of Toronto, compounding the strain on local health services.

Housing affordability dominated the campaign. Rising home prices and rental costs made it increasingly difficult for families in the riding to find affordable accommodation. Candidates debated approaches to rent control, the pace of affordable housing construction, and the impact of investor-driven purchases on the local rental market. The riding’s mix of post-war bungalows and low-rise apartment buildings was under growing development pressure, raising concerns about neighbourhood character and displacement.

Transit was another key issue. Residents relied heavily on bus service for commutes into downtown Toronto, and proposals for rapid transit connections through Scarborough—including a potential Durham-Scarborough Bus Rapid Transit line—generated strong local interest. Road maintenance and traffic congestion on arterial routes like Kingston Road and Danforth Avenue also concerned voters in this commuter-heavy riding.