2018 Municipal Election

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Corporate and union donations banned
(CATCH, Aug 4 2016)

Ontario’s new law banning corporate and union donations in municipal elections could have significant impacts in Hamilton, especially if ward boundaries are also changed to give voters more equal representation. While providing the option of ranked ballots has drawn most attention, other changes in the recently adopted legislation shorten election campaigns, regulate third party interventions, and require more accessible polling stations.

The Municipal Elections Modernization Act now specifies that only “an individual who is normally resident in Ontario” including the candidate and her/his spouse “may make contributions” in city and school board elections. The legislation goes on to specify who cannot make donations including “a corporation that carries on business in Ontario,” and “a trade union that holds bargaining rights for employees in Ontario”.

Most Hamilton city councillors have relied heavily on corporate and union monies to fund their election campaigns (and in some cases lavish post-election parties and handouts). For example, in the last city election two years ago, corporate and union monies comprised over 80 percent of the contributions reported by Terry Whitehead and Chad Collins.

That was also the case for over two-thirds of donations to Tom Jackson, Jason Farr, Scott Duvall (since resigned) and Maria Pearson. Councillors Sam Merulla and Lloyd Ferguson also got most of their election funds from corporations or unions. Judi Partridge, Robert Pasuta and Arlene Vanderbeek each reported their corporate or union monies provided 43 to 48 percent of their donations.

The least affected by the new ban might be Brenda Johnson and Doug Conley who reported no corporate or union gifts – the latter using only personal funds for his campaign. Also little affected would be Matthew Green and Aidan Johnson who collected over 85 percent of their donations from individuals.

In last March’s by-election, winner Donna Skelly reported corporate and union donations covered more than half of her fundraising. None of this money came from companies with addresses in her central mountain ward, a situation that was also true for all but one of her individual donors.

If the changes had been in force for the November 2014 election, they might also have affected the mayoralty race. Winner Fred Eisenberger got more than two-thirds of his financing from corporations and unions, while his two main competitors both relied primarily on individual donations. Monies from the 185-plus individuals who donated to Brian McHattie’s campaign made up nearly three-quarters of his contributions, while Brad Clark got a little over half of his monies from 82 individuals.


Read it in full here.