Photo: P199 · CC BY-SA 3.0Each seat on LaSalle’s council stands for 5,210 residents, more than in 84% of Ontario municipalities
The October 2022 vote made Crystal Meloche mayor of LaSalle, heading 7 seats. The council shown is the one elected in 2022, since Ontario voted again on 26 October 2026 and no open file of the new councils exists yet. The riding (a federal electoral district, which elects one MP) covering LaSalle is Essex, and Chris Lewis (Conservative Party of Canada) represents it in the House of Commons. Essex is the riding LaSalle votes in for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, and its MPP (Member of Provincial Parliament, at Queen’s Park in Toronto) isn’t named here because no open list records the members.
What stands out in how LaSalle is governed
Many residents per seat
LaSalle council spreads its seats over a big population; the typical municipality in Ontario has one seat per 1,540 residents. Council size ↓
Turnout below the norm
LaSalle council drew fewer of its electors to the polls in 2022 than the typical Ontario municipality (35%). How LaSalle voted ↓
High spending per resident
In 2024, 72% of Ontario’s lower-tier municipalities spent less per resident than LaSalle council. Council money ↓
A close federal race
With 9.2 points between the winner and the runner-up (New Democratic Party), Essex beat 74% of the 338 ridings for closeness in 2021. How LaSalle has voted ↓
Compared with the province’s municipalities of 1,000+ residents (2021 Census; MAMH, MMAH and Statistics Canada).
Three governments, and who does what
LaSalle, a town in Ontario, shares the work with the province and Ottawa.
Local services, by-laws and property tax.
Spends most on public health and paramedics, then social services and child care (2024 return).
Schools, health care, highways, municipal law.
ola.org ↗Passports, pensions, EI, defence, immigration.
ourcommons.ca ↗Who to ask
Green: municipal. Gold: provincial. Grey: federal.
Above LaSalle’s council sits Essex County, the upper tier, which runs services across all its municipalities.
From the council table to Ottawa
Every elected tier that speaks for LaSalle, from the most recent elections.
- 1LaSalle councilelected October 2022Crystal Meloche
- 2Legislative Assembly of OntarioEssex
- 3House of CommonsEssex
Party colours are neutral on purpose: they tell parties apart and aren’t the parties’ own. MPs: Wikidata (CC0), 45th Parliament statements, read 7 November 2026; ridings: 2023 Representation Order, Statistics Canada
Who was elected to LaSalle council in 2022
Everyone elected in 2022, with their votes; Ontario’s file gives each seat’s votes but not the ward’s name.
- Crystal Meloche
- Michael Akpata
- Mark Carrick
- Sue Desjarlais
- Jeff Renaud
- Anita Riccio-Spagnuolo
- Terry Burns
7 members and how they were elected
| Name | Seat | Votes | Share of the seat’s votes | On the last council |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crystal Meloche | Mayor | – | acclaimed | Yes |
| Michael Akpata | Deputy Mayor | – | acclaimed | Yes |
| Mark Carrick | Councillor | 3,896 | 12% | Yes |
| Sue Desjarlais | Councillor | 4,267 | 13% | Yes |
| Jeff Renaud | Councillor | 4,810 | 15% | Yes |
| Anita Riccio-Spagnuolo | Councillor | 4,064 | 13% | Yes |
| Terry Burns | Councillor | 3,156 | 10% | No |
No seat on LaSalle council belongs to a ward; the mayor and every councillor face the whole municipality. Crystal Meloche was acclaimed mayor, with no one on the ballot against them.
Councils: Ontario 2022 Municipal Election data, MMAH (OGL-Ontario)
LaSalle voted less than most of Ontario in 2022
Turnout in the October 2022 municipal elections, beside nearby municipalities; the tick is Ontario’s median.
On 24 October 2022, only 30% of electors voted for LaSalle council, a weaker showing than most of Ontario.
How LaSalle voted: same source as Councillors, above.
When LaSalle votes
The last and next general elections at each level; a by-election can come in between.
| Election | Last | Next |
|---|---|---|
| LaSalle council | 26 October 2026 | 28 October 2030 |
| Legislative Assembly of Ontario | 27 February 2025 | – |
| House of Commons | 28 April 2025 | – |
Why not 2025? Elections Canada publishes those counts under non-commercial terms, and its open data stop at the 2021 election. Provincially the last general election was on 27 February 2025, for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario; federally, on 28 April 2025. Under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, LaSalle’s next municipal vote is on 28 October 2030, the fourth Monday in October every four years.
Election dates: the legislatures, MMAH and MAMH
LaSalle votes in Essex for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Provinces and territories run schools, health care and municipal law; each riding elects one MPP.
MPP: see the legislature’s list
ola.org ↗LaSalle is in Essex, one of the ridings that each elect a MPP to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. The riding comes from the 2013 federal map, which southern Ontario’s provincial ridings match under the Representation Act, 2015.
Southern Ontario ridings: the 2013 federal boundaries (Representation Act, 2015), Statistics Canada
Chris Lewis represents Essex in Ottawa
Each riding elects one MP to the House of Commons; the general election of 28 April 2025 chose the 45th Parliament.
Essex · Conservative Party of Canada · first elected 2019
en.wikipedia.org ↗- Liberal Party of Canada71
- Conservative Party of Canada50
As Wikidata records them.
The Conservative Party of Canada, Chris Lewis’s party, takes 50 of the 122 seats from Ontario; the Liberal Party of Canada takes 71.
The MP’s record
The current Parliament is Chris Lewis’ 3rd, counting from a first win in 2019. Elections Canada’s transposition of the 2021 vote onto today’s Essex puts the Conservative Party of Canada first at 41%; Chris Lewis held it for the party in 2025.
MPs: Wikidata (CC0), 45th Parliament statements, read 7 November 2026; ridings: 2023 Representation Order, Statistics Canada · MPs’ records: Wikidata (CC0), positions held and party memberships, read 8 November 2026
Chris Lewis kept Essex for the Conservative Party of Canada in 2021
Results in Essex as drawn in 2013, the boundaries of the 2019 and 2021 elections; the riding was redrawn for 2025.
Turnout in Essex reached 67% in 2021, against 63% nationally. In 2019, Chris Lewis had won the same riding with 41%. 6,463 votes separated Chris Lewis (Conservative Party of Canada) from Tracey Ramsey (New Democratic Party) in Essex in 2021, when the winner took 41%.
All 7 candidates in Essex, 2021
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Lewis | Conservative Party of Canada | 28,741 | 41.1% |
| Tracey Ramsey | New Democratic Party | 22,278 | 31.8% |
| Audrey Festeryga | Liberal Party of Canada | 10,813 | 15.5% |
| Beth Charron-Rowberry | People's Party of Canada | 6,925 | 9.9% |
| Nancy Pancheshan | Green Party of Canada | 865 | 1.2% |
| Jeremy Palko | Christian Heritage Party of Canada | 182 | 0.3% |
| Andrew George | Independent | 172 | 0.3% |
Federal results: Elections Canada, 43rd and 44th general elections and the 44th’s transposition to the 2023 ridings, via open.canada.ca. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada
LaSalle council spends more per resident than most
The 2024 financial return: spending by service and revenue by source, per resident, compared only with Ontario’s lower-tier municipalities.
Spending per resident by service, 2024
What pays for it
Shares of revenue, town and province.
At 45%, property taxes count for more of the revenue than the 42% seen across the province. At $1,068 per resident, LaSalle council’s $34.9M of long-term debt is more than the $440 median. LaSalle council spent $2,389 per resident in 2024, against a median of $1,901 among Ontario’s lower-tier municipalities. The upper tier, Essex County, adds $1,043 per resident of its own, mostly for public health and paramedics. The return counts 185 full-time positions, 5.7 for every thousand residents. Water, sewers and waste takes the biggest share, 35%, or $838 per resident.
Every service line, 2024
| Service | 2024 | Per resident | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water, sewers and waste | $27.4M | $838 | 35% |
| Police, fire and protection | $16.8M | $513 | 21% |
| Recreation and culture | $11.9M | $362 | 15% |
| Roads and transit | $11.5M | $352 | 15% |
| General government | $9.6M | $295 | 12% |
| Planning and development | $965K | $29 | 1% |
Money: Financial Information Return 2024, Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
LaSalle council beside its neighbours
Residents (2021 Census) per council seat, head of council included, beside nearby municipalities; the tick is the provincial median.
The bars put the headline’s figure for LaSalle council next to nearby councils, the tick marking the provincial median.
Residents: 2021 Census; seats: the province’s council list
Having a say in how LaSalle is run
Check or update the federal list.
elections.ca ↗Every MP lists an office.
ourcommons.ca ↗Ridings, registration and voting dates.
elections.on.ca ↗What this data can and can’t tell you
- Council money. Figures are the 2024 Financial Information Return’s totals after adjustments, per resident on the return’s population. Lower tiers stand beside lower tiers only: their county or region spends on top.
- Council size. The council size includes the head of council; the population is the 2021 Census, the whole city’s for a neighbourhood.
- Election results. Elections Canada redrew the ridings in 2023 and re-tallied the 2021 ballots onto the new map from polling divisions; that estimate, and the official 2019 and 2021 counts on the old map, are what you see.
- Which riding. The 2021 Census homes of a place’s residents fix its ridings, and one is shown once it holds 5% of them.
- Who holds each seat. A member who resigned or switched parties last week may still show here: the names are Wikidata’s.
- Not on this page. Band councils, and which party runs the council: the open lists carry no party, and most councils have none.
Questions about how LaSalle is run
Who is the MP for LaSalle?
For LaSalle, it’s Chris Lewis (Conservative Party of Canada), who holds Essex.
Which party won LaSalle in the 2021 federal election?
Chris Lewis (Conservative Party of Canada) took Essex in 2021 and is its MP today.
Who is the MPP for LaSalle?
Essex is the riding; its sitting MPP is on the Legislative Assembly of Ontario’s own list of members for LaSalle and its neighbours.
Who heads the council in LaSalle?
Crystal Meloche was elected mayor in October 2022, for the 2022–26 term of LaSalle council.
How much does LaSalle council spend?
The 2024 return of LaSalle council shows $78.2M of spending for roughly 32,721 residents, $27.4M of it on water, sewers and waste.
Which regional body is LaSalle part of?
The council of Essex County, made up of members from its municipalities, LaSalle among them, is the upper tier.
How is LaSalle council elected?
At large: every voter helps fill all of LaSalle council, the mayor too.
What was the turnout in LaSalle?
Turnout for LaSalle council reached 30.1% in October 2022 (Ontario median: 35.5%).
Sources: MPs: Wikidata (CC0), 45th Parliament statements, read 7 November 2026; ridings: 2023 Representation Order, Statistics Canada · Southern Ontario ridings: the 2013 federal boundaries (Representation Act, 2015), Statistics Canada · Councils: Ontario 2022 Municipal Election data, MMAH (OGL-Ontario) · Money: Financial Information Return 2024, Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · Next municipal election: the province’s municipal election act · Municipality types: Statistics Canada census subdivisions · Federal results: Elections Canada, 43rd and 44th general elections and the 44th’s transposition to the 2023 ridings, via open.canada.ca. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada · MPs’ records: Wikidata (CC0), positions held and party memberships, read 8 November 2026. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).