The race for Ottawa West–Nepean is heating up as candidates push through a cold winter campaign.
Incumbent Ontario NDP candidate Chandra Pasma is fighting to hold onto her seat after a narrow win in the last provincial election, while her Ontario Liberal and Progressive Conservative challengers are making their case to voters.
On Tuesday morning, in Ottawa’s Bel Air Park neighbourhood, Pasma was knocking on doors and speaking to residents about the party’s platform, emphasizing healthcare and affordability.
“We have a lot of big issues at stake in our province. A health care system that’s completely broken, people with no family doctor, long wait times at our hospitals but also real challenges with the cost of living.” Pasma said.
“It’s tough to buy groceries and pay the bills and also, our schools are in very rough shape and over the past seven years, these things have only gotten worse under Doug Ford.”
Pasma won the seat in 2022 by just 900 votes and is not taking re-election for granted.
“People need an advocate, a government that’s on their side, that’s actually going to put forward policies that address these issues,” she said.
Speaking with constituents at an apartment complex along Baseline Road, Ontario Liberal challenger Brett Szmul, a teaching assistant at Carleton University, is also focused on healthcare and says the province needs a government with priorities ‘in the right place.’
“We need a government that will spend people’s money wisely, that will invest in our health care system, our education system, build the infrastructure and the housing that we need to grow the economy in the long term,” Szmul said.
“We want to cut people’s taxes. So, anyone earning in that middle income bracket, we want to cut their income tax by 22 per cent. We’re going to cut HST on home heating and hydro. Just these things that will put a little bit more money in folk’s pockets every month when it comes time to pay the bills.”
In the Centrepointe neighbourhood, Progressive Conservative candidate Husien Abu-Rayash, a former Canadian Armed Forces reservist, is campaigning on leadership and job protection.
“Everyone is really concerned about protecting their jobs. These tariffs that are coming, attacking all Ontarians, attacking all of my people in Ottawa-West Nepean, it’s the main concern,” Abu-Rayash said.
Abu-Rayash said voters are looking someone with the right leadership skills to tackle the U.S. tariff threat.
“As a former reservist in the Canadian Forces, in my training, it teaches me to be disciplined, to be a team player, a hard worker,” he said. “I am hungry for this and I’m able and capable of delivering all of those and solving all of these issues.”
Green Party candidate, Sophia Andrew-Joiner, declined a request for an interview with CTV News Ottawa. Candidate Rylan Vroom is also on the ballot, representing the New Blue party.
Ottawa West–Nepean has historically swung between the Liberals and PC’s, with an NDP breakthrough in 2022.
With health care, affordability, the potential incoming U.S. tariffs and jobs dominating discussions, the race remains competitive.
