The Ontario PC Party announced that Hamilton City Councillor Jeff Beattie, who represents Ward 10 – Stoney Creek–Fruitland–Winona, will be their candidate for Hamilton East–Stoney Creek in the upcoming provincial by-election.
Beattie was planning to run again for Councillor in the Oct. 26 municipal election, but has now withdrawn from the race.
The riding will be left without a representative effective Aug. 4, after Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) and Minister of Sport Neil Lumsden, 73, announced his retirement.
Lumsden was first elected in 2022 and was re-elected on Feb. 27, 2025 after Premier Doug Ford called a snap election.
Before that, the riding was a long-time NDP stronghold, with candidate Paul Miller achieving as much as 51.15 per cent of the vote in the 2018 election before he was controversially kicked out of the party by then-leader Andrea Horwath.
“Jeff Beattie has spent his life giving back to Hamilton East–Stoney Creek,” Ford commented in a press release.
“As a successful small business owner, dedicated community volunteer, and respected city councillor, Jeff has a proven record of delivering results. He understands the priorities of local families and will be a strong voice as we continue protecting Ontario, creating good-paying jobs, building infrastructure, and investing in the services people rely on,” Ford continued.
Beattie is a lifelong Winona resident and sixth-generation Stoney Creeker who owns and operates Winona Gardens Greenhouse and Garden Centre on Highway 8 at Fifty Road with his wife Tina.
The business was founded by Beattie’s grandfather in 1953 on land that has been in the Beattie family since 1890.
Winona Gardens received the Stoney Creek Chamber of Commerce Legacy Award in 2018.
Beattie attended Orchard Park Secondary School in Stoney Creek and graduated from Niagara College’s Business Administration program before serving as a school trustee from 2014-2018 and vice-chair of the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board.
Beattie ran for City Councillor in the 2018 municipal election, finishing third with 2,692 votes (24.53 per cent).
Incumbent Maria Pearson finished first with 3,988 votes (36.34 per cent), followed by Louie Milojevic with 2,990 votes (29.25 per cent).
In 2022, Beattie ran again and increased his vote share to 4,236 (39.69 per cent) and won the race, while Milojevic came in second with 3,436 votes (32.20 per cent), and Pearson came in third with 3,000 votes (28.11 per cent).
Beattie has also been a volunteer with the Winona Peach Festival for nearly 30 years and is one of the founding organizers of the Winona Hallowe’en Bash.
He has volunteered with the Winona Easter Egg Hunt, 1st Winona Scout Group, and the Orchard Park Robotics Team.
He is a long time member of the Winona Men’s Club and the Winona Horticultural Society, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, the Ontario Federation of Agriculture, and the Stoney Creek Chamber of Commerce.
“I am honoured to have the opportunity to represent the community that has given so much to me and my family,” Beattie commented.
“Hamilton East–Stoney Creek is a great place to live, work, and raise a family, and I want to continue fighting for the people who call it home. As part of Doug Ford’s team, I’ll work every day to build on the progress we’ve made, strengthen our local economy, and continue delivering the investments our community needs.”
As City Councillor, Beattie has voted against property tax increases, opposed the Vacant Unit Tax and the Stormwater Fee Rain Tax, and supported increased police funding.
Meanwhile, the Ontario Liberal Party has nominated Heino Doessing as their candidate in the by-election.
Doessing was born and raised in Denmark and moved to Canada in 2010, living in Toronto and Saskatchewan before settling in Hamilton.
Doessing ran in the 2025 provincial election in Hamilton East–Stoney Creek, finishing second with 12,323 votes (31.61 per cent), compared to Lumsden’s 16,401 (42.07 per cent).
The Ontario NDP have not yet nominated a candidate in the riding, although Zaigham Butt ran for them in the last two elections, finishing a distant third in 2025 with 6,862 votes (17.60 per cent).
The Toronto Star is reporting that Ford will announce the by-election date on Aug. 5, with voting day likely to be on Sept. 3.
Two other provincial ridings, Scarborough Southwest and York–Simcoe, will also have a by-election at the same time after other MPP departures.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
