Mississauga Ward 4 by-election had been called for April 27th! Check out Joe Horneck's campaign website and support a strong voice for transit!TodayT

Last month, I wrote about how I thought Joe Horneck would be a strong addition to Mississauga city council with an upcoming by-election for Ward 4 in downtown Mississauga.

With Mississauga Council calling the by-election today for April 27th, I encourage you to check out Joe's website and get involved with his campaign if you're in the Mississauga area. Mississauga needs a strong voice for transit and city-building now more than ever.

Joe Horneck would be strong addition to Mississauga City Council

It was a great personal experience to serve as Alvin Tedjo's campaign manager in Mississauga Ward 2 this fall, one that really made me think about the future of my hometown as it builds an independent identity for itself.

With that in mind, some interesting things have happened since the municipal election. Long-time City Councillor Frank Dale was elected as Peel Regional Chair, and as such, a by-election is happening in his former Ward 4.

While a number of candidates have put their name forward, I believe Joe Horneck is by far the best candidate for the future of Mississauga.

Joe has a strong, progressive and urban vision for Mississauga:

As co-chair of the western summit’s report, Unlocking Our Gridlock Together, A Citizens' Report on Transit, Horneck has been an effective advocate for action on an issue that needs all the action it can get. He’s quite comfortable being dubbed “the transit candidate.”...

He’s an unabashed supporter of the Hurontario LRT and says an integrated hub at the Cooksville GO Station could be a catalyst that’s required for the economic stimulation of that corner of the ward.

“If we can get a mix of private and public sector investments coming together around the transit hubs, it spills into the neighbourhoods around it,” he says.

I encourage you to follow Joe on Twitter and get involved in his campaign.

Why I'm supporting Alvin Tedjo for Mississauga Ward 2

I haven't had too much opportunity to blog lately, but it certainly hasn't been as a result of not being politically active - indeed, I've been working every day for the past month or so helping run the campaign of Alvin Tedjo, who is running for City Council in Mississauga's Ward 2.

I haven't written too much about municipal political on this blog since I started writing it all the way back in 2007, but I am making an exception, because Alvin is an exceptional candidate.

This municipal election is the most important Mississauga has faced in a generation. Mayor Hazel is retiring, and so is Pat Mullin, who served as city councillor in Ward 2 for decades. It will mean a lot of change for the city, but it is also an opportunity for a new generation of leadership to emerge, and Alvin wants to be a part of that change.

He's committed to community. He's raising his family with his wife Rebecca in Sheridan Homelands, 2 kids with a 3rd on the way soon, and he's running because he wants his family, and all families in Mississauga and in the community to have the opportunity to grow, learn, work and play in a strong Mississauga. A Mississauga that expands its transit network to help commuting families spend more time at home and less time in traffic. A Mississauga that protects the valuable green space and waterfront it has, to preserve and protect Jack Darling Park and the Rattray Marsh for today and tomorrow. A Mississauga with great community infrastructure like parks, playgrounds and paths, so all families can enjoy community space and come together as a community.

And he's got the experience to get the job done, having worked with the City for several years as a training and development consultant and most recently, serving as Senior Policy Advisor to the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities in Ontario's Liberal government.

With election day just a few weeks away, if you live in Ward 2 (Clarkson, Sheridan Homelands, and Lorne Park), I hope you will support Alvin!

Elephant in the room: Hudak continues to flip-flop on power plants

The literal elephant in that picture is from a PC photo op stunt done in Mississauga on September 28th, in an attempt to attack the Liberals over the power plant issue. The bigger elephant though, are the numerous statements made by Hudak and local Mississauga Conservatives in favour of scrapping the plant.

Hudak, who has flip-flopped on issues like the tax reform, health care funding, protecting the rights of Ontario citizens and a triple flip-flop on full day kindergarten has ironically now built up a pretty consistent track record of flip-flopping and making up policy on the fly. Hudak and the PC's can go after the Liberals, but the facts are simple; while the PC's talked and played politics, the Liberals took action. I'd say Bill Clinton's quote about it taking some brass for attacking someone for doing what you did would be a good fit, but all Hudak has actually do is vent hot air and continue to flip-flop.

Mississauga News endorses Charles Sousa for Ontario Liberal Leader, says his private sector experience is "invaluable"

Like the Sousa campaign on Facebook!
Follow Charles on Twitter!
Follow the Sousa campaign on Twitter!

A great endorsement from the major paper of Ontario's third largest city!

It’s time to put Charles in charge.

We endorse Sousa, the 54-year-old MPP for Mississauga South who has held three Cabinet posts since first being elected in 2007. He has a 20-year background in banking that could prove invaluable in dealing with Ontario’s financial challenges.

Read more here!

"Sousa sounded and looked very much like a man who would be comfortable as the next premier of the province."

Like the Sousa campaign on Facebook!
Follow Charles on Twitter!

This article is a couple days old now, but I wanted to post it to show the extremely positive reception Charles received talking to local business leaders in Mississauga, while also outlining his vision to create jobs and grow the economy to protect our gains in health care and education.

Ontario's leaders must govern by addressing the long-term needs of the province, not by "just looking at the next election cycle," Mississauga South Liberal MPP Charles Sousa told the Mississauga Board of Trade this morning...

The second-term MPP pressed his home field advantage in front of an attentive audience at the Mississauga International Centre by outlining his policies to improve life in the GTA, which he said was burdened by both traffic gridlock and "political gridlock."

"It's all about growing the economy and jobs," the MPP said. "That will allow us to pay for the things that really matter — health care and education." 
Instead of headlines bemoaning the fact that traffic in the GTA is worse than it is in Los Angeles, Sousa said he wants to write a new economic story by implementing policies to create jobs and curb gridlock.
He outlined a five-point GTA plan that he claimed will put the 416 and 905 regions back on the road to prosperity.
"We can remove one complete layer of decision-making" by making Metrolinx responsible for MiWay, the TTC and all local transit systems in the GTA, he suggested.

It's finally time to build the high-speed rail connection from Windsor to Quebec City that every provincial government has talked about — but none has acted on — the Mississauga native said.
"It's time for action and we need to start with the Hamilton to Toronto and Toronto to Oshawa sections," he said.
Ontario must make significant long-term capital investments in high speed rail now because otherwise the economic benefit will be lost to the U.S., which is also looking at the prospect...

The former Labour and Immigration minister said the new policy he launched several weeks ago to attract more immigrants to Ontario is critical to meeting the province's future labour needs. "In the future 100 per cent of the net jobs will be filled by newcomers to Ontario."
Another long-term problem that has never been addressed, despite ongoing promises from every party, is the Ontario Condominium Act. Sousa promised "immediate reform” of the legislation to give owners a greater voice on condo boards and to force the licensing of condo managers.

Investing in post-secondary education in times of a down economy, such as the one we are in now, will pay huge dividends down the road as the economy recovers, argued the 54-year-old graduate of Gordon Graydon Secondary School.

He urged approval of a new university campus in neighbouring Milton, Ontario's fastest-growing municipality, as soon as possible. 
"We have the funding. We need to act,” he said.
At ease in front of the friendly MBOT audience, Sousa sounded and looked very much like a man who would be comfortable as the next premier of the province.
"We do have a strong foundation in this province  but we need to work together," he concluded. "It's not about the future of anyone's political stripe, it's about the future of the province."