MPP Dave Smith Gets Three-Peat and Is Elected For Third Consecutive Term For Conservative Party

Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith has reached the political three-peat as was elected for a third term representing the PC Party after the provincial election held on Thursday.

Smith wins a third-consecutive term for the PC Party. John Melville Turner (1977-1987) was the last Conservative member to win three-straight terms. Photo by David Tuan Bui.

Smith won the riding with 40.5 per cent of the votes (22,383). This was an increase from 38.5 per cent (20,188 votes) in his last election in 2022. He beat Liberal Party candidate Adam Hopkins, who had 36.4 per cent of the votes (20,135) as the runner-up.

“It is truly an honour to be able to do this. I've said it multiple times, I owe a debt to the people of Ontario that I can only repay by doing something like this, by giving back to our community,” exclaimed Smith. “I really appreciate the people of this area have decided they'll put their trust in me for four more years. To be able to move the needle so that we have a better place for all of us to live in.”

Smith held his election party at the Peterborough Golf & Country Club and had roughly 80 people in attendance. He was declared the winner roughly 80 minutes after the polls had closed, securing his third term. Premier Doug Ford was re-elected to a third term six minutes after polls closed and immediately had a majority government declared.

“When people take a look at the hard work that we've put into it, what we've tried to accomplish, the steps that we have taken so far, the groundwork has been laid,” explained Smith. “We have help coming and we have things starting to make a difference now.”

As Smith remains MPP, he says it’s obvious that healthcare needs to be worked on but employment opportunities are an even greater priority.

“We saw 3,900 jobs that could have come to this area because we did not have the appropriate land for it. We also had an agricultural company that came to look at it, they needed 65 acres of land. The largest that we had was 44. That company chose to go another location as a result of it,” explained Smith. “We need to have to find a way to have more employment land available so that when we have those opportunities to bring a company here, they actually decide this is the location for them.”

Despite Peterborough having a college and university, many graduates are not staying in town for work; something that needs to change according to Smith.

“We need to reverse that trend,” he said. “That's one of the main things we'll be working on the next four years.”

When asked about the people that did not vote for him, Smith says he’s happy they exercised their right to vote and he is willing to listen to their concerns.

“My door is always open, please feel free to reach out to us, talk to me about what your issues are,” he said. “If it's something that we can help with that's going to make a positive difference, we are going to take every opportunity then to look at that and make this place a better place for everyone.”

The following were the results of the Peterborough-Kawartha Riding:

• Dave Smith (Conservative) - 22,383 votes (40.5 per cent)

• Adam Hopkins (Liberal) - 20,135 votes (36.4 per cent)

• Jen Deck (New Democratic) - 9,480 votes (17.1 per cent)

• Lucas Graham (Green Party) - 1,738 votes (3.1 per cent)

• Andrew Roudny (New Blue) - 864 votes (1.6 per cent)

• Brian Martindale (Ontario Party) - 684 votes (1.2 per cent)

Smith (left) beign congratulated by Hopkins (right) moments after the former was declared the winner of the provincial election.

Hopkins made a brief visit congratulating Smith’s win. He is newer to the political world, being elected two weeks prior to the election. Despite being unable to defeat Smith, he was happy with the results since he was named the Liberal Party candidate in a short amount of time. He said he didn’t know how it was going to go or had a lot of confidence to start but it grew quickly with the election results since the Liberals gained some seats and regained official party status as a result with 14 (12 being the official threshold).

“There's some good numbers and we've got some momentum behind some additional seats,” he said.

Liberal Party Leader Bonnie Crombie lost her Mississauga East-Cooksville riding to PC Party candidate Silvia Gualtieri by a vote count of 46.5 percent (16,763) to 43.1 per cent (15,536).

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MPP Dave Smith Reflects On Political Career As He Seeks Three-Peat In Thursday's Provincial Election

With the provincial election this Thursday, Peterborough Kawartha MPP Dave Smith reflects on his political career as he goes for the three-peat, seeking a third consecutive term.

Smith talks to constituants at AON Inc’s Royal Gardens Retirement Residence days before election this Thursday. Photo by David Tuan bui.

Smith was first elected in 2018 for the Progressive Conservative Party, defeating current Peterborough mayor and then incumbent Jeff Leal of the Liberal Party. He won his second term in 2022, making him the most recent Conservative Party member elected as Peterborough-Kawartha MPP in back-to-back terms since Gary Stewart did it from 1995 to 2003.

Smith visited Royal Gardens Retirement Residence and held a Q&A session for constituents living on the grounds.

Among topics discussed, including US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and employment, among other issues, healthcare was one of the critical topics Smith and the residents touched on.

“We've laid the groundwork for a lot of things. There are things like adding doctors. It just takes five years for a doctor to be trained. There's no way we can get around that,” explained Smith. “With the work we have done, the increase in the number of residence positions by 400. We are producing more doctors now than we were. We're going to see the benefits of that.”

“My whole philosophy on this is that I owe a debt to the people of Ontario that I cannot repay. The only way I can start to give back is to continue doing this work to make that our community is in a better position than it was when I first found it,” added Smith. “I think a lot of the work I've been doing has been about that. That's what my focus is on, ‘How can continue to improve the situation for people here?’”

Smith adds that the provincial government is adding a $6.2 million Homeless Addiction Rehabilitation Treatment (HART) hub, announced in late January. His government also proposed a $1.13 million detox and residential treatment facility in Peterborough, containing six drug and six detox beds for those battling with addictions that were announced in February 2023. These are several moves, among many, that he said he would continue to do for Peterborough-Kawartha.

“We've increased the funding for the Peterborough Regional Hospital. We've added tools for physician recruitment, we have changed the process, the scope of nurse practitioners can do more of what they're taught and not have their hands handcuffed on certain things and we'll continue down that path and meeting people where they are but we're not leaving them there,” Smith said. “We're going to do everything we can to improve the lives of as many people as possible.

Smith has been challenged by all new candidates since the last provincial election in 2022, except Jen Deck, who is once again running as the NDP candidate.

Regardless of Thursday’s outcome, Smith reflects on serving two terms at MPP and has not taken his role for granted.

“I'm proud of the fact that people have put their trust to serve their needs, to listen to what they have to say and I think when you look at what I have done, the legacy will be that I listened, I reacted, I tried to improve the situation and I'll continue to do that,” concluded Smith.

The following are the candidates running for Peterborough-Kawartha MPP:

• MPP Dave Smith: PC Party of Ontario (incumbent)

• Adam Hopkins: Ontario Liberal Party

• Jen Deck: Ontario NDP/NPD

• Lucas Graham: Green Party of Ontario GPO

• Brian Martindale: Ontario Party

• Andrew Roudny: New Blue Party

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MPP Dave Smith Named Ontario PC Party Candidate In Next Provincial Election For Peterborough-Kawartha

Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith is going for a third consecutive term as he has been acclaimed as the Ontario PC party’s candidate in the next provincial general election, announced on Thursday.

Photo by Luke Best.

Smith earned his second term in a back-to-back after being re-elected in 2022 with 20,188 votes which is 38.5 percent of the ballots. Gary Stewart was the last Conservative MPP for the Peterborough-Kawartha riding to get elected for consecutive terms from 1995-2003.

Smith was declared the winner 38 minutes after the polls had closed. Premier Doug Ford was re-elected to a second term 11 minutes after polls closed. They earned a majority government seven minutes later.

“I want to thank the great people of Peterborough Kawartha for putting their trust in me to once again carry the banner for Premier Ford and the Progressive Conservatives in the next provincial election,” said Smith. “We have accomplished so much over the last seven years but my work is not yet finished. I want to thank my family for their unwavering support and all of my friends who have rallied around me to help make life better for everyone in our region.”

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Murray Whetung Community Service Award Act (Bill 31) To Be Presented For Third Reading

The Murray Whetung Community Service Award Act will be presented for a third reading on March 25, 2025, announced by Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith on Friday.

The second reading passed unanimously at Queen’s Park in early March last year. pHOTO courtesy of Dave Smith.

In the First and Second World Wars, roughly 7,000 First Nations individuals volunteered to serve. As a result, many who served were stripped of their rights for a time away from the reserve. Indigenous veterans able to retain their status were often ineligible for benefits available to non-Indigenous veterans following the wars.

If passed, the bill will create an award for Cadet Corps and Squadrons at the Annual Ceremonial Reviews. They will select a member who has displayed exceptional volunteerism and citizenship over the previous year for a new award from the province of Ontario, the Murray Whetung Community Service Award.

“Murray Whetung was a pillar in our community. He volunteered fight in the Second World War and dedicated his life to family and service. I was honoured to receive his endorsement for this legislation before his passing,” said Smith. “This bill does more than recognize the life of one man; it seeks to teach others of the injustices First Nations veterans faced for risking their lives in service to Canada.”

“My Shomis (grandfather) was humbled when MPP Smith approached him about the idea of an award named after him. My Shomis did what he thought needed to be done and didn’t expect special recognition,” Emily Whetung, Curve Lake First Nation former Chief. “He was a shining example of choosing happiness in the face of adversity and an inspiration to so many of us.”

The third reading will follow the Opposition Day Motion and will be live on the Legislative Assembly video feed.

“I’ve long stood proud on November 11 because of the commitment and sacrifice he has made and as our second Remembrance Day without him approaches I can’t think of a better way to celebrate his memory,” said Whethung. “Chi-miigwetch for learning our history and ensuring it is remembered by cadets across Ontario.”

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Government of Ontario Partnering with Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre to Protect at Risk Species in Peterborough

The Ontario government is providing nearly $500,000 in funding through the Species at Risk Stewardship program to the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre as they undertake on-the-ground work to protect turtles at risk in the community.

photo by felicia massey.

Dave Smith, MPP for Peterborough-Kawartha was joined by David Piccini, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, as well as donors and other community members on Wednesday at the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre for the groundbreaking of their new hospital for Ontario’s native turtle species.

“This forever home has been a dream that is finally coming to reality. I cannot express how much great work the centre does, from rehabilitating injured turtles to the recovery and fertilization of turtle eggs from those turtles who sadly do not make it,” said Dave Smith, MPP for Peterborough–Kawartha. “We are extremely fortunate to have such a world leader in conservation right here in our own backyard.”

Led by the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre, the Hospital and Hatchling Program, and supported by the Species at Risk Stewardship Program, this project helps reduce some of the effects of road mortality on turtle populations. Seven out of eight of Ontario's turtles are at-risk. The funding will help mitigate threats to at-risk turtles through rehabilitation, education, field studies, research and data-sharing.

“Everyday, dedicated local and community organizations across Ontario demonstrate their commitment to protecting and recovering plants, insects, animals and their habitats,” said Minister Piccini. “Our government is proud to partner with grassroots organizations across the province to make a real impact. The 2023-24 projects continue Ontario’s track record of strong environmental stewardship and preserving the rich biodiversity of our province for future generations.”

As part of the Species at Risk Stewardship Program, Ontario has provided $914,703 to support the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre since 2018 in their work to rehabilitate, conduct field studies and research and mitigate threats for at-risk turtles. The new funding builds on this longstanding support and investment with the conservation centre.

“The Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre gratefully acknowledges the tremendous support that the MECP's Species at Risk Stewardship Program has given, to enable us to continue our vital conservation work,” said Mandy St. Germaine, Chair of the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre. “As we enter our new growth phase, we shall be able to increase our national impact in turtle conservation even more, and very much look forward to our continued partnership with MECP.”

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Ontario Government Providing Additional Funding for On-Call Care at the Peterborough Regional Health Centre

Member of Provincial Parliament for Peterborough-Kawartha Dave Smith announced Friday that the Ontario government is investing $3,471,232 into the Peterborough Regional Health Centre (PRHC) to support more on-call funding for doctors working after hours.

photo courtesy of dave smith, facebook.

This funding will help patients to continue to get the care they need in-hospital, right when and where they need it.

“This funding increase will help PRHC by increasing the number of physicians available for patients when the hospital needs that extra support.” said Dave Smith. “This is just one more step the province is taking to ensure the right level of care is available when it is needed and further help reduce wait times for the people of the greater Peterborough area.”

This funding follows through on previous agreements between the Ontario Medical Association and Ontario Ministry of Health to increase dedicated funding for physicians on-call. This funding will support on-call coverage at nearly 100 acute-care hospitals in Ontario.

This funding will support after-hours care at PRHC and allow for more stable after-hours coverage. This investment recognizes the efforts of health care workers, especially those who provide on-call services in addition to their regular working hours whenever hospitals need it.

“On behalf of PRHC, I want to thank MPP Smith, Ontario Health and the Ministry of Health for today’s exciting announcement,” said Dr. Lynn Mikula, president and CEO of Peterborough Regional Health Centre. “This funding for on-call support will have benefits for both our physicians and our patients, and help to ensure that the people of our community and region have better access to the care they need, when they need it.”

This funding includes a $12.5 million investment from the 2021 Physician Services Agreement with the Ontario Medical Association which will also commits to a fundamental re-design of the Hospital On-Call Coverage program into a burden-based funding model. This ensures equitable distribution of funding across physicians providing on-call services.

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Peterborough Animal Care Centre Receives Grant of Over $1.5 Million From Provincial Government

The Peterborough Animal Care Centre (PACC) has received a grant of $1,560,500 from the Minister of Infrastructure of the Province of Ontario to continue its building development and expansions announced by MPP Dave Smith and the Peterborough Humane Society (PHS) on Friday morning.

A stray kitten with Sarah Graham, PACC animal care attendant. The kitten and her siblings were found in an abandoned house with their mother Ursula. Photo by Samantha Bianco.

The funding will aid in several programs and project completions such as an off-leash public access dog park, trail system, memorial patio and garden space according to Shawn Morey, PHS executive director.

"It's directly supporting our programming, we're doing a lot of kids camps, we're going to be doing some programming around responsible pet ownership and facilitation of adoption,” he said.

Kassie Graham, PACC Marketing & Communications Coordinator (left) with Moose (middle) and Sarah Graham (right). Moose is up for adoption at the PACC and is behign showcased at the future site of the centre’s off-leash public access dog park. Photo by Samantha Bianco.

The PACC had known about the funding for roughly over a year but was finalized around Christmas according to MPP Dave Smith. He says the work PACC does in conjunction with the Solicitor General’s office was obviously to lobby for the facility to receive government funding.

“The Humane Society, they are the society for the prevention of cruelty to animals locally. They do a lot of that work for us and work with the Solicitor General's office,” explained Smith. “We recognize what's happening in the greater Peterborough area and I'll even go beyond Peterborough County. The facilities they had previously weren't big enough to do a lot of things they needed to do.”

To that point, the PACC had been community-funded however Morey says that they are still seeking $3 million to finish it. There could be more requests down the road for building expansion within the next few years.

“This center has been built by the community, for the community. That's one of our big statements with making this come to fruition,” said Morey. “It's been 10 years in the making since we initially had this concept of building this state-of-the-art facility completion. Plus we have additional phases that we're going to look at over the next few years to help advance the building.”

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Ontario Government Provides One-Time Funding Increase of $2.5 Million For Homeless Prevention in Peterborough and the County

Peterborough and the County just got an extra $2,492,700 for homelessness prevention now totalling $7,657,000 for the city’s budget, announced by MPP Dave Smith at City Hall on Wednesday morning.

In 2022, the government introduced the More Homes Built Faster Act to address the housing crisis by building 1.5 million homes by 2031. Photo by David Tuan bui.

The money is part of the Ontario government’s investment of an additional $202 million for the province’s annually in the province’s Homelessness Prevention Program and Indigenous Supporting Housing Program, bringing Ontario’s total yearly investment in these programs to close to $700 million.

The funding is meant to support the most vulnerable by providing supportive housing and homelessness prevention services.

“Peterborough, like so many cities across Ontario, is experiencing a homelessness crisis,” said Mayor Jeff Leal. “This funding from the Province of Ontario will help support our most vulnerable with critical homelessness prevention and supportive housing services.”

The additional funding has come as a surprise to some City staff and Council members as the budget was finalized in January according to Smith. The money will be added to the original budget the City had intended for homelessness.

“This gives them an opportunity then to make some plans on what they're going to do with it,” he said.

City Council has until April 1 next year to spend the money as they see fit in a ‘use it or lose it’ situation and cannot be banked for next year’s funding.

Smith also added that partially as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, there were more people who were unhoused and this increase in funding is in recognition of that increasing number.

“When we were developing the budget this year, we were able to find some additional funding that flowed into it,” he explained.

When asked about how many people it will aid, Smith says it’s hard to gauge as it could be premature to issue a number. He continued saying it could be as low as the high 90s but can reach the 300s.

“I think the most important thing we should be looking at is taking that snapshot in time, where are we sitting right now, how many individuals do we have that need that additional support and what plans can we put in place to address that,’ he explained.

Smith recognized during provincial budget talks that Peterborough was a city in significant need of reducing homelessness issues.

“We need to make sure we’re proactive so we don’t find ourselves in a position in July or August of this year that a number of individuals see themselves where their only recourse is to set up a tent at Victoria Park,” said Smith.

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$104,200 Ontario Trillium Grant Supporting New, Sustainable Fundraising Strategy

Community Counselling and Resource Centre (CCRC) welcomed MPP Dave Smith on Friday to hear more about the $104,200 Resilient Communities Fund grant it received in 2022.

file photo.

The grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) was used by CCRC to work with a fundraising firm, helping develop a fundraising strategy and plan to create new, sustainable sources of revenue.

Funding from the grant supported the hiring of a fundraising consultant, staff resources and the purchase of a subscription for a grant database.

"Today's announcement of $104,200 has helped the Community Counselling and Resource Centre to recover from the pandemic,” MPP Dave Smith said. "By focusing on new ideas to build for the future, they are able to continue focusing on the important work they do best, helping to support residents in the community.”

People from all areas of Peterborough City and County and now Northumberland rely on CCRC to provide them with low or no cost counselling and/or services through the Housing Resource Centre.

"We are so fortunate to have received funding from the Ontario Trillium Foundation" said Kirsten Armbrust, executive director of CCRC. "This grant has allowed us to work with a consultant to strengthen our fundraising program. We are committed to the sustainability of our organization and fundraising is an integral part of that process."

For more information visit the website.

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Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith Has Grand Opening of New Constituency Office

Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith’s new Action Centre constituency office had its grand opening at the Asta Spirit Plaza on Wednesday.

Staff and friends applud the grand opening of MPP Smith’s new constituency office that is roughly 2,300 sq. ft. , an upgrade of approximately 1,400 sq. ft.Photo by David Tuan Bui.

The office is in Unit E of the plaza, located at 864 Chemong Rd. It replaces the prior location on 1123 Water St. Smith moved the office since the property was to be demolished to construct new housing units.

The new space has been operable since December but renovations had recently finished prior to the grand opening.

The location created greater accessibility for not just Peterborough but for the Kawarthas as well according to Smith.

“Almost 50 per cent of the population of this riding lives to the north and east of The City of Peterborough,” he explained. “I need to make sure that wherever we went was going to be a spot that was easily accessible for someone coming down from Kinmount or coming from Havelock or North Kawartha.”

He also emphasized that the new 2,300-square-foot location created a barrier-free space, something he was adamant about ensuring when he chose the new location. Full wheelchair accessibility, an automatic door opener, widened doorways and room upgrades were improvements made to the Chemong Road building.

“This is all wheelchair accessible, it's barrier-free and that was one of the main things for me, If someone wanted to come see their MPP, they have an opportunity to come here regardless of what disability they may or may not have.”

The expanded space added a new feature for the public as the Action Centre has in-person private constituent rooms for anyone wishing to speak to Smith or his staff.

“If somebody comes in and wants to talk to one of the constituent assistants or myself about something that's a little sensitive, we have an area we can go to now that's a little more private,” explained Smith. “They don't have to be sharing that information with others if they're coming in.”

The grand opening also had a ribbon-cutting ceremony that signified the end of renovations and that the office was running at 100 per cent.

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