Joking about how elections in Canada are more civilized. And then also about how neither of them won.

First, congratulations to George Minakakis, Milton’s next mayor — and to everyone elected last night. Credit as well to everyone who put their name on a ballot.

Now for the political post-mortem.

Sameera Ali may have helped create the opening that ultimately helped defeat her.

In 2022, George ran for Ward 1 councillor and lost badly:
Kristina Tesser Derksen: 4,200
George Minakakis: 1,671

Then Derksen was elected federally in 2025, leaving Ward 1 vacant.

Town staff recommended an appointment. A by-election was estimated to cost $185,000–$200,000.

Sameera opposed the appointment route and supported going back to the voters.

George ran.
George won.

With 1,804 votes and just 17% turnout, the man who had lost Ward 1 three years earlier suddenly had something he had never had before:
A seat at Milton Council.

One year later:
George Minakakis: 20,262 — 45.2%
Gord Krantz: 11,398 — 25.4%
Zainab Azim: 6,203 — 13.8%
Sameera Ali: 3,540 — 7.9%

Sameera had been elected in Milton since 2018.
She didn’t finish second.
She didn’t even finish third.
She finished behind a candidate with no previous elected municipal experience.

And the by-election wasn’t her only consequential political choice.

In June 2025, Sameera co-sponsored a Gaza motion that passed unanimously.

Five months later she went significantly further: asking Milton to endorse the Apartheid-Free Communities pledge and urging Ottawa to pursue a two-way arms embargo involving Israel and expand the Gaza Temporary Resident Visa program.

That motion lost 5–4 and produced opposing petitions totalling roughly 4,000 signatures.

Sameera said she was representing residents affected by the conflict.

Fair enough.

My read was different: it looked like pandering, and like municipal political capital being spent on one of the most divisive foreign-policy issues in the world while Milton had plenty of problems firmly inside its own jurisdiction.

Can I prove that cost her the election?
No.

Nobody can look at 3,540 ballots and tell you why each person voted the way they did.
But 7.9% after eight years in elected office is not a close loss.
It is a political rejection worth studying.

And there’s a fascinating parallel one city over.
Bonnie Crombie left the Mississauga mayor’s office for provincial politics, creating the vacancy Carolyn Parrish won in 2024. Alvin Tedjo finished second.

Crombie’s provincial gamble failed, she came back for her old job, and the 2026 race became increasingly dominated by Crombie and Parrish attacking each other.

Then voters chose Tedjo.
Tedjo: 74,479 — 38.9%
He beat both the incumbent mayor and the former mayor.
Different cities.
Different circumstances.
Same lesson.

Political openings matter.
Judgement matters.
The fights you choose matter.
The constituencies you chase matter.
And sometimes, while established politicians are focused on positioning themselves for the next job, somebody else quietly walks through the door they opened.

Sameera fought for Milton voters to choose who filled Ward 1.
They chose George.
A year later, Milton chose him again.
Call it irony.
Call it a butterfly effect.
Call it karma if you want.
But the numbers are brutal.

——————

SOURCES
Town of Milton — 2022 municipal election results
Town of Milton — 2025 Ward 1 by-election results
MiltonNow — May 2025 reporting on the Ward 1 vacancy, staff recommendation, estimated by-election cost and council debate
MiltonNow — 2026 Milton municipal election results
MiltonToday — June 2025 reporting on the first Gaza/West Bank motion
MiltonToday — November 2025 reporting on the second Gaza motion, council vote and opposing petitions
CityNews Toronto — October 2026 Mississauga mayoral debate coverage
City of Mississauga — 2026 municipal election results

I am not sure of the exact cause of this crash, but it appeared quite severe. Please stay safe, everyone; drivers, please keep your phone down when driving and away from the dashboard. I see many distracted drivers lately.

Congrats to George Minakakis on winning (unofficial results). He has no formal platform document, so I tried to pull together what he's said at forums and interviews and when we can check on it. The dates after Nov 15 are my estimates, so please correct me if you know better.

What he's said (from forums and interviews):

• Keep property taxes down, with "new revenue sources" and growing the non-residential tax base. No target percentage given.
• Attract employers (he mentioned companies with 300 to 400 jobs) and protect employment land.
• Match growth to roads, transit and services, with public reporting on timelines and costs.
• "Take a hard look" at data centres, no to diesel ones, not an automatic yes.
• All-day GO is "a priority," pursued with the province.
• Seek a seat on the Halton Police Board, and meet each councillor monthly.
• He says a mayor should "own" the budget.

What to check, and when:

• Nov 15: term starts. Does he plan to use strong-mayor budget powers?
• Dec 2026 to Jan 2027: the 2027 budget. What's the tax increase compared to 6.94% in 2026, and did he vote for it?
• First 3 months: first growth report, monthly councillor meetings, police board application.
• 2027: the data centre study and his criteria, a plan for employment land, concrete GO asks.
• 2028 to 2029: job numbers, the non-residential tax base, the infrastructure deficit.
• Oct 28, 2030: next municipal election.

Where to look: council agendas, minutes and recorded votes on the Town's website, the annual budget documents, MiltonToday and Inside Halton.

Questions we still don't have answers to: What's his 2027 tax target? What would he cut? What's his plan on housing, hospital capacity, parks and development charges?

Fixes and additions are welcome. Let's keep it factual and civil.

UPDATE he’s been found!!! He is safe and at home. We’ve learned that most cats don’t go very far and it narrowed our search to look under cars. Bushes and in our neighbours backyards. They were very gracious and let us search for him. So if any of you see this, thank you so much for your empathy 🌷 He was found right next door to us, under a BBQ cover.

If anyone sees this and they loose their pet, check close to home and look for hiding spots. Cats don’t tend to come when called and they hide somewhere nearby.

He is happy to be home.

_________________

Got out of the house at around noon today (October 26th) on Cedric terr near Bessborough Dr. he is a very gentle and friendly cat, not aggressive. Is probably hiding under a car or in between houses. He’s never gotten out before because he is an indoor cat but is always curious about the outdoors. Please notify if/when you see him!

I’m not familiar with posting on reddit so I’m sorry if I didn’t do the right tags or post structure. Any advice is absolutely welcome!

Sammy Ijaz is off council!

We did it guys!

Milton has a lot of non-white people who voted for white folks, because reasonable people want what is best for our town.

I am not a white person and all I am seeing is qualified people winning. People had a resume to rely on instead of religion/country-of-origin-based politics.

If you are seeing racism, then be assured that no one could have just won from the white people vote. It is the town that has elected its leader. If you are seeing racism, you might want to introspect.

Congrats to George Minakakis! After 46 years of Gord Krantz, Milton finally has a new mayor.

Hopefully this is a fresh start for the town. Less focus on foreign politics at council meetings, less trying to get entire communities to vote for one “consensus” candidate based on their shared background and more focus on the issues that actually affect people living in Milton.

Traffic, taxes, development, and affordability. That’s what local politics should be about.

Congrats George! Now let’s see some real change and put Milton first. 🇨🇦

Any way to petition / get prioritized fibre to an older neighbourhood. I’m stuck on 1G down and 30M up which is rough for my WFH situation.

Appreciate constructive replies 🙏

Looking at the housing near the highway in the Clarke area, around James snow parkway and derry. How is that area / neighbourhood. Anything I should worry about

Congrats to all the winners. Now that the election is over, a friendly reminder to remove all the signs so that we can enjoy the last remnants of Milton's fall showing! 🍂

Live poll updates for Mayor of Milton.

Again, I'm extremely disappointed at the voter turn out.

Only ~35% cared enough to vote....

Can someone explain to me why one would not vote? Apathy? Laziness?

https://results.milton.ca/index.html

Monday morning, almost every street feels completely dead, I was riding my bike when the chain slipped off the gears. There was absolutely no one around to help.
Farmstead Dr & WhitLock Ave

But then, THAT one person stepped up. He got his hands dirty, literally, covered them in grease, and helped me fix my bike. Additionally, he pointed out the actual problem was not just with the chain but the bike stand also had to be fixed. -
I’m immensely grateful to him. ❤️ - God Bless you !

Join us and get to know eachother!

what do you guys think

[ Removed by Reddit on account of violating the content policy. ]

Nice Courtyard

Also I don't know a lot about Deadmau5 I only know they have a custom skin in Minecraft and was in goat simulator

Does he usually look terrified?

I love golf, and it keeps me nice and busy during the season. But with Fall upon us, I'm trying to find other things to do. Obviously there is indoor golf, but outside of that - any ideas?

Hello

Does anyone know of anybody that Tudors grade 12 Physics? My son asked us to find him one. Thank you

I'm looking for a groomer for 2 small, sweet dogs under 20 lbs. One is 14lbs. Have never bit- not ever. Need asap