conservative john jordan was handily re-elected in lanark-frontenac-kingston, leading his liberal challenger by nearly 7,000 votes with 90 per cent of the polls reported.
jordan garnered nearly one of every two votes cast in the riding, which stretches from the western outskirts of ottawa nearly all the way to the st. lawrence river. liberal rob rainer placed second, followed by john macrae of the new democratic party.
voter turnout topped 46 per cent in the riding of some 90,000 electors.
few regions have been as dependable for the tories as lanark-frontenac-kingston, which has voted blue for more than two decades. jordan first won the seat in 2022, taking more than 50 per cent of the vote, more than double the support of his nearest rival.
the liberals last held the seat in 2003, when it was known as hastings-frontenac-lennox and addington.
before jordan, the riding was held for 15 years by randy hillier, the fiery and outspoken mpp who made his name with his populist “back off our land” campaign for landowner rights. hillier was elected as a conservative, but later sat as an independent after being booted out of the conservative caucus by premier doug ford. hillier was a fixture at rallies opposing government measures during the covid-19 pandemic and vociferously supported the 2022 truckers’ occupation of downtown ottawa.
jordan served as parliamentary secretary to the minister of agriculture in the ford government. before entering politics, jordan was a health administrator, most recently serving as ceo of connectwell community health.
rainer is the reeve of tay valley township, having previously served as a councillor. his background is in the non-profit sector and as a consultant, letter carrier and outdoor education instructor.
the ndp’s john macrae is a federal public servant with health canada and first sought the riding’s ndp nomination in 2022.