The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, M ay 19 ,2 02 2 | 10 THE RIDING: The Oakville riding is a 94 square kilometre area with a population of 120,920, according to a 2016 census. It is bounded by Missis- sauga to the east, Burling- ton to the west and Lake Ontario to the south. To the north, the Oak- ville riding is bounded by Upper Middle Road from Burlington to 8th Line and then Dundas Street East from 8th Line to Mississau- ga. THE CANDIDATES Stephen Crawford is the Progressive Conservative party candidate and the in- cumbent. He has served as Oakville's MPP since 2018 and lists saving the Glen Abbey Golf Course as one of his major achievements. "The PCs are putting money back into your pockets by lowering gas taxes by 10 cents per litre, raising the minimum wage and scrapping licence plate stickers and annual fees. Only Doug Ford and I will get it done for Oakville." Stephen Kenneth Craw- ford is the candidate for the None of the Above Direct Democracy Party. He is a radio host at www.revolu- tion.radio. "I am the best person to represent 'THE PEOPLE' because I AM 'THE PEO- PLE'. As a former club singer and current radio host, I am used to moderat- ing people and getting the full story." Alison Gohel is the On- tario Liberal Party candi- date. Over the past 10 years, she has worked as a manag- er in the tax and legal de- partment of multinational professional service firms. "I believe public service is a privilege and an ho- nour. I bring business sense and common sense to my work, along with compas- sion for others," she said. Maeve McNaughton is the Ontario NDP candi- date. She is a student at To- ronto Metropolitan Uni- versity and a manager at MyBabbo, a company that produces tribute media for funerals and memorial keepsakes. "I care about people above all else. My priori- ties are ensuring that no one has to worry about how they're going to pay rent, feed their kids, or find a safe place to sleep at night," McNaughton said. Mark Platt is the New Blue Party candidate. He is the owner of JPlatt Rugs, a family-owned handmade rug business. "I'm here to challenge the status quo. After 15 years of political yes-men it's time for fresh eyes. I can be the voice of untainted common sense," said Platt. Bruno Sousa is the Green Party of Ontario candidate. He is a green en- trepreneur, business own- er and long-standing mem- ber of the Oakville commu- nity. "I am an experienced in- novator who knows how to develop solutions, with the right attitude and disci- pline to get things done. I will embrace the duties of office and work for the peo- ple and organizations of Oakville," said Sousa. Silvio Ursomarzo is the candidate for the Freedom Party of Ontario. He is the senior manager of regula- tory operations for a Cana- dian bank. "I will fight for and de- fend against the continu- ous onslaught of this gov- ernment's trampling over your freedom to pursue your own happiness and will seek a government that makes and enforces laws that prevent anyone from taking your life, lib- erty, or property without your consent," said Urso- marzo. Ontario Party candidate Alicia Bedford and Ontario Moderate Party candidate Andrew Titov did not re- spond to our questionnaire by press time. THE ISSUES Many Oakville resi- dents are concerned about housing prices and not be- ing able to make ends meet because of the increasing cost of living. Others see the need to control development as an important issue, fearing the introduction of large- scale apartment buildings and what this will do to their stable communities. Traffic congestion, hardships facing small businesses, climate change and access to quality long- term care are among other issues residents care about. BACKGROUND In 2018, PC candidate Stephen Crawford defeated long time Ontario Liberal Party incumbent Kevin Flynn. Flynn had been Oakville's MPP since 2003. ONTARIO VOTES: AN OVERVIEW OF OAKVILLE RIDING Here's what you need to know about the Oakville riding. KhanN image PROVINCIAL ELECTION DAVID LEA dlea@metroland.com