Ontario New Democratic Party candidate Natasha Doyle-Merrick has withdrawn from the provincial race for the riding of Eglinton—Lawrence, saying she had no hope of winning and would rather help the Liberals beat the Progressive Conservative candidate there.
“Many residents cannot afford another four years of an Ontario Conservative government. This is why I have decided it was best to no longer be in this election, as it is clear that it is a two-party contest between the Ontario Liberals and Ontario Conservatives,” Doyle-Merrick wrote on Thursday, announcing her decision.
The PCs’ Michelle Cooper said it showed the weakness of her opponents’ campaigns and candidates.
“This announcement from the NDP only proves the Liberals and NDP have no plan to fight for our community. They’re not serious parties—they can’t even meet the basic test of running a full slate of candidates,” she wrote in a statement to National Post.
“The Ontario PCs are the only party with a plan to protect Ontario, and as your next MPP for Eglinton-Lawrence, I’m ready to be a strong voice for our community.”
Since 2018, the riding has been held by the PC MPP Robin Martin, despite being held by the Liberals for nearly two decades before that. Martin announced her intention to step down in early November. Cooper, who secured the PC nomination in December, previously served as executive director of the Ontario PC Party Fund.
The Eglinton-Lawrence riding remained sharply contested in the 2022 election, with Martin besting the Liberal opponent by only a few hundred votes and a margin of less than two per cent. Doyle-Merrick had run for the NDP then but came in a distant third, with less than 10 per cent of the vote, while the PCs and Liberals each took over 40 per cent.
“This election is crucial because the past seven years Doug Ford and the Ontario Conservatives have been absent and ineffective, showing zero interest in delivering the support ALL residents in Eglinton–Lawrence need to thrive,” she added, without explicitly naming either the Liberal candidate Vince Gasparro or the PC candidate.
Gasparro is a former director of the Postmedia Network, publisher of National Post. He stepped down in September to enter the race and previously served as a senior adviser in Paul Martin’s Liberal government and John Tory’s Toronto mayoralty.
Gasparro thanked Doyle-Merrick in a public statement posted Friday afternoon on X, saying she “put the well being of her community above all else.”
“Her decision is a testament to who she is and to her commitment to the people she strives to help. I know this wasn’t an easy choice to make; like many of her supporters, our campaign shares a deep desire for a better future for our community and all of Ontario,” he added. “To those who have supported and voted for Natasha, I share your concerns and frustrations about the direction Ontario has been taking for the last 7 years.”
Neither Doyle-Merrick nor Gasparro responded to interview requests prior to publication.
On Thursday, Gasparro denounced Premier Doug Ford’s handling of antisemitism across Ontario schools, insisting “we need action now!”
“The reality is that antisemitism is a real and growing threat, and delaying action will only allow further harm to occur,” he wrote in a statement referring to a showdown this week at the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) over accepting a recently commissioned report with recommendations to resolve pervasive problems with antisemitism in schools .
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