Five candidates are running for the Mississauga—Erin Mills MP seat — the riding in which the UTM campus is located — in the upcoming federal election on September 20. 

Iqra Khalid, Liberal Party MP Candidate

Iqra Khalid is the Liberal candidate running for re-election as the MP for Mississauga—Erin Mills. Khalid, who grew up in Erin Mills, completed her undergraduate degree at York University and later attended Western Michigan University Cooley Law School.

Since she was first elected MP in 2015, Khalid has served as a member and is currently the chair of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights. In 2018, the committee introduced its report Moving Forward in the Fight Against Human Trafficking in Canada. Khalid also sponsored petition E-609, which lobbied the Canadian government to aid people in Aleppo, Syria who had been impacted by the Syrian civil war. 

Khalid believes that “Vaccines are the most effective tool we have to protect our communities & end this pandemic.” 

James Nguyen, Conservative Party MP Candidate 

U of T alum James Nguyen is the Conservative candidate running for MP in the Mississauga—Erin Mills riding. Nguyen received his Honours BSc from U of T and his MBA from the Schulich School of Business at York University.

Nguyen’s work as an insurance and investment advisor has provided him with experience in estate planning, risk management, wealth preservation, and supply chain management. 

In his free time, Nguyen volunteers and fundraises for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Peel, the Mississauga Food Bank, and his local church. During the pandemic, he also raised money to donate personal protective equipment to hospitals, retirement homes, and places of worship in his area. 

Kaukab Usman, New Democratic Party MP Candidate

Kaukab Usman is the New Democratic Party (NDP) candidate for the Mississauga—Erin Mills riding. She currently resides in Erin Mills. 

Usman received her Master’s degree in English literature and continued on to earn a Master’s in educational leadership from Wayne State University. She founded the Center for Economic Integration of Immigrant Professionals (CEIIP) in 2018. 

Usman is Pakistani-Canadian. She actively volunteers at many organizations, including community kitchens, and is a member of the Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee of City of Mississauga and the Peel Poverty Strategy Action Group.

Usman also explained her position on healthcare. “Universal healthcare should have coverage for dental, pharmacare and mental health support. No one should be denied because of financial stability,” she wrote on her Twitter. 

Ewan DeSilva, Green Party MP Candidate 

Ewan DeSilva, an analytical chemist with experience in environmental testing, is running for MP of the Mississauga—Erin Mills riding on the Green party ticket. “Much of my motivation is… to try to provide a better future [for my children] from an educational and financial perspective,” wrote DeSilva.

In regard to student debt, DeSilva wrote that he would advocate for student debt forgiveness and the elimination of undergraduate tuition. He would also require all university programs to include a co-op placement so students can gain work experience. He would promote student mental health by providing more counselling services both in person and online.

DeSilva also wrote about his extensive plans to combat climate change, including promoting the use of biogas generators to dispose of organic waste, implementing tree planting days in schools, subsidizing rooftop solar panels, and eliminating the use of fossil fuel passenger vehicles over the course of the next five years. 

Michael Bayer, People’s Party of Canada MP Candidate 

According to his profile on the PPC party’s website, Michael Bayer has lived in Mississauga for over 20 years and attended York University. According to a profile by The Toronto Star, Bayer identified himself as a “Fiduciary wealth advisor and investigative journalist for Free Speech Media.” 

Bayer has not listed any policies specific to the Mississauga—Erin Mills riding, but supports the national PPC platform. The PPC platform includes reducing immigration quotas in order to address the Canadian housing crisis, as well as removing funding from social housing projects. The party also supports reducing taxes, including income and business taxes.

On his social media, Bayer expressed opposition to vaccine passports in Ontario and mask mandates at voting stations for the upcoming election, a position supported by the PPC. 

The Varsity has reached out to Khalid, Nguyen, Usman, and Bayer for comment.