Regional Profile
The region is the central section of Southern Ontario, mainly comprising the rural area around Lake Simcoe. This has traditionally been the most conservative region of Ontario, in sharp contrast to the Greater Toronto Area to the south. It has historically been the backbone of support for the provincial Tories.
The citizens of the region are mostly white, Protestant, and agrarian, with a large number of social conservatives. This populace gave root to the Reform Party and Canadian Alliance in Ontario, with Simcoe Centre electing a Reform MP in 1993--Reform's only victory east of Manitoba, ever. Though the Liberals swept the region during the Chrétien era, largely due to Reform-PC vote-splitting, the Unite the Right movement (accompanied by Chrétien's departure from office) led to a majority of Liberal MPs losing their seats beginning in 2004. In 2006, Liberal support in this region melted; the only non-Conservative elected in this region was Belinda Stronach, a former Conservative who crossed the floor in 2005. Stronach's seat reverted to the Conservatives in 2008. In 2011, the conservatives again swept the region. The NDP came in second in all but 1 due to their surge.
The electoral district of Peterborough has long been recognized by political scientists as one of the best bellwether ridings in the country.
Read more about this topic: Canadian Federal Election Results In Central Ontario
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“Expecting rain, the profile of a day
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