THORNHILL

Conservative candidate Melissa Lantsman has won the riding of Thornhill.

The seat had been held since 2008 by Conservative MP Peter Kent, who announced last year that he would not run again.

Lantsman has been a communications professional and has also volunteered for local political campaigns over the years.

She beat Liberal candidate Gary Gladstone, a charity sector worker, and NDP candidate Raz Razvi, a college professor.

Lantsman has been a political commentator in Canada, appearing in newspapers and on television. She is a graduate of the University of Toronto.

Post-pandemic recovery was the issue at the tip of everyone’s tongue, with small businesses struggling and residents still concerned for the future of the economy in these uncertain times. There are other issues on the periphery, including the rise in shootings around the region — from 886 incidents in 2016 to 3,617 in 2020, representing a 259 per cent increase.