Midwestern Ontario stays blue, results closer than previous elections

Ben Lobb has been re-elected to his sixth consecutive term as an MP.

Midwestern Ontario stayed Conservative on Monday night, but the results were certainly closer than in year’s past.

In Huron-Bruce, Liberal James Rice was leading after the first 20 polls, creating some tension at Ben Lobb’s Conservative election night party in Lucknow.

But, as more polls came in, Lobb, who has won the past five elections, pulled away, securing his record-setting sixth consecutive term, as Huron-Bruce’s M.P.

“If this election would have been in October, we probably would have won by 40 or 50%. And we know that was largely people dislike Justin Trudeau. And so in January when he resigned, people obviously had a change in what they were thinking about. And then when Trump was inaugurated, that was another change. So, I knew it was going to be a close election, just by my conversations at the arena,” says Lobb.

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In Perth-Wellington, Conservative John Nater, secured his fourth straight win, keeping the riding, Conservative since it’s creation in 2004.

In Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound, Alex Ruff took home his third straight victory, maintaining the Conservative stronghold.

But all three races were closer than in year’s past, as the New Democratic Party vote dropped in all three ridings, leading to the Liberals finishing a much closer second in all three Midwestern Ontario ridings. As an example, Ben Lobb won in 2021 by more than 15,000 votes. Monday’s margin of victory, with 255 of 259 polls reporting, will be fewer than 10,000 votes. With similar, smaller margins of victory, for Nater and Ruff, than in election’s past, as well.