Four candidates now named for Scarborough Southwest provincial byelection, date of vote yet to be announced
While the provincial byelection for Scarborough Southwest has yet to be officially called, the pieces are starting to fall into place for the vote as four major parties have announced their candidates.
On Friday, July 10, the Ontario Progressive Conservative party named Dr. Noor Tarun as its candidate for the byelection. And on July 14, a news release from the Green Party of Ontario said Mark Bekkering would be the party’s candidate in Scarborough Southwest.
According to Elections Ontario, the byelection must take place no later than Sept. 3 of this summer.
The NDP and Liberals have already named their candidates for the Scarborough Southwest byelection.
Running for the Liberals will be Ahsanul Hafiz.
Running for the NDP will be Fatima Shaban.
Candidates Bekkering, Shaban and Tarun will be familiar to Scarborough Southwest voters as they have all run in past elections in the riding.
Most recently, Shaban was the NDP candidate in the federal byelection in Scarborough Southwest that saw Doly Begum elected as the new Liberal MP for the riding in April of this year.
Tarun ran for the federal Conservative Party in Scarborough Southwest in the April 2025 federal election.
Bekkering was the provincial Green Party candidate in Scarborough Southwest in the February 2025 provincial election.
In announcing Tarun as the Ontario PC candidate, Premier Doug Ford praised the longtime family physician in the community.
“Dr. Tarun understands that people want leaders who focus on practical solutions and get results,” said Ford. “He’ll be a strong advocate for Scarborough Southwest as we continue growing our economy, lowering costs for families and keeping our communities safe from crime. I know Dr. Tarun will work hard every day to deliver for the people of Scarborough Southwest.”
Bekkering said in the news release announcing he will be the Green Party candidate that Premier Ford and his ruling Progressive Conservative government, which has been in power since 2018 and won its third straight majority government in the 2025 election, has let down the people of Scarborough.
“The Ford government has let the people of Scarborough down. Families in my community are struggling to make rent, buy groceries and save for the future. Every year, we feel the effects of climate change get worse. Our community needs a government that’s going to fight for more affordable homes, better transit and a sustainable future,” he said.
The Scarborough Southwest Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) seat became open after Doly Begum, who had served in the role for the NDP since 2018, announced in February of this year that she would be stepping down to run for the Liberals in riding’s federal byelection.
That federal seat became open after Liberal MP Bill Blair, who had held the seat since 2015, announced in February of this year that he would be stepping down to become Canada’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom.
