Riding to watch: Hamilton Centre
In case you’re just joining us now, we’re highlighting a few ridings to watch tonight.
Hamilton Centre should be the NDP’s for the taking, but there is a wild card: Sarah Jama. Former NDP leader Andrea Horwath held the riding for many years, with massive margins in elections, but she resigned in 2022. Jama won the seat handily in a 2023 byelection, but was kicked out of the NDP caucus less than a year later and has sat as an independent since then.
Jama’s ouster came after a series of events that began with a statement on the Israel-Hamas war that failed to mention the attack on Israeli civilians, though the decision was ultimately made after a series of moves from Jama that either publicly defied the party leader or caught her unaware. Jama is running as an independent in this election and has a dedicated and vocal group of supporters, giving her the potential to eat into NDP support.
