Photo: Wesoree · CC BY-SA 4.0One councillor per 28,580 residents: Markham is more thinly represented than 97% of Ontario municipalities
As a neighbourhood of Markham, Thornlea shares the council elected in October 2022, with Frank Scarpitti as mayor. 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 3 ridings of Markham—Thornhill, Richmond Hill and Thornhill each take in part of Thornlea for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Thornlea’s current MPP isn’t named here, because no open source records the Legislative Assembly of Ontario’s members. For federal votes, Thornlea belongs to Markham—Thornhill, its riding (a federal electoral district, which elects one MP); Tim Hodgson (Liberal Party of Canada) holds it.
What stands out in how Thornlea is governed
Many residents per seat
Across Ontario the median is one seat per 1,540 residents, well under the ratio on Markham council. Council size ↓
Split between ridings
Markham—Thornhill takes in 57% of Thornlea, and Richmond Hill South the bulk of the remaining 43%. Member of Parliament ↓
Low spending per resident
Per resident, Markham council’s 2024 spending sits under 83% of Ontario’s lower-tier municipalities. Council money ↓
Compared with the province’s municipalities of 1,000+ residents (2021 Census; MAMH, MMAH and Statistics Canada).
Three governments, and who does what
Thornlea is governed by Markham, with Ontario and Ottawa.
The city council decides local matters.
Spends most on social services and child care, then roads and transit (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 Markham’s council sits York Region, the upper tier, which runs services across all its municipalities.
From the council table to Ottawa
Every elected tier that speaks for Thornlea, from the most recent elections.
- 1Markham councilelected October 2022Frank Scarpitti
- 2Legislative Assembly of OntarioMarkham—Thornhill · Richmond Hill · Thornhill
- 3House of CommonsMarkham—Thornhill · 57%
- 4House of CommonsRichmond Hill South · 29%
- 5House of CommonsThornhill · 14%
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 Markham council in 2022
Everyone elected in 2022, with their votes; Ontario’s file gives each seat’s votes but not the ward’s name.
- Frank Scarpitti
- Keith Irish
- Isa Lee
- Amanda Yeung Collucci
- Andrew Keyes
- Reid McAlpine
- Karen Rea
- Ritch Lau
- Juanita Nathan
- Jim Jones
- Joe Li
- Michael Chan
- Alan Ho
13 members and how they were elected
| Name | Seat | Votes | Share of the seat’s votes | On the last council |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frank Scarpitti | Mayor | 44,172 | 64% | Yes |
| Keith Irish | Councillor | 6,095 | 74% | Yes |
| Isa Lee | Councillor | 6,549 | 81% | Yes |
| Amanda Yeung Collucci | Councillor | 4,921 | 79% | Yes |
| Andrew Keyes | Councillor | 5,120 | 73% | Yes |
| Reid McAlpine | Councillor | 5,007 | 57% | Yes |
| Karen Rea | Councillor | 8,563 | 92% | Yes |
| Ritch Lau | Councillor | 3,012 | 36% | No |
| Juanita Nathan | Councillor | 5,388 | 48% | No |
| Jim Jones | Local and Regional Councillor | 26,578 | 13% | Yes |
| Joe Li | Local and Regional Councillor | 25,823 | 12% | Yes |
| Michael Chan | Local and Regional Councillor | 30,095 | 14% | No |
| Alan Ho | Local and Regional Councillor | 24,735 | 12% | Yes |
The mayor is chosen at large; everyone else on Markham council answers to a ward. For mayor, Frank Scarpitti drew 64% of the votes.
Councils: Ontario 2022 Municipal Election data, MMAH (OGL-Ontario)
Thornlea voted less than most of Ontario in 2022
Turnout in the October 2022 municipal elections, beside nearby municipalities; the tick is Ontario’s median.
Markham council was elected on 24 October 2022 with 32% of electors voting, below the provincial middle.
How Thornlea voted: same source as Councillors, above.
When Thornlea votes
The last and next general elections at each level; a by-election can come in between.
| Election | Last | Next |
|---|---|---|
| Markham council | 26 October 2026 | 28 October 2030 |
| Legislative Assembly of Ontario | 27 February 2025 | – |
| House of Commons | 28 April 2025 | – |
The 2025 results are left out because elections.ca’s terms forbid commercial reproduction; the open catalogue’s latest is 2021. The next council election in Markham falls on 28 October 2030, the fourth Monday in October every four years under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996. Provincially the last general election was on 27 February 2025, for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario; federally, on 28 April 2025.
Election dates: the legislatures, MMAH and MAMH
Thornlea spans 3 ridings 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 ↗MPP: see the legislature’s list
ola.org ↗MPP: see the legislature’s list
ola.org ↗Which MPP in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario represents a home in Thornlea depends on the street. By law (the Representation Act, 2015), southern Ontario’s provincial ridings follow the 2013 federal boundaries, so each place is located from those.
Southern Ontario ridings: the 2013 federal boundaries (Representation Act, 2015), Statistics Canada
Thornlea has 3 MPs
Each riding elects one MP to the House of Commons; the general election of 28 April 2025 chose the 45th Parliament.
Markham—Thornhill · Liberal Party of Canada · 57%
en.wikipedia.org ↗Richmond Hill South · Conservative Party of Canada · 29%
en.wikipedia.org ↗Thornhill · Conservative Party of Canada · 14%
en.wikipedia.org ↗- Liberal Party of Canada71
- Conservative Party of Canada50
As Wikidata records them.
Tim Hodgson sits with the Liberal Party of Canada, which holds 71 of the 122 seats from Ontario.
The MP’s record
On today’s boundaries, the 2021 vote in Markham—Thornhill would have gone to the Liberal Party of Canada with 62%, and Tim Hodgson kept it for them in 2025. April 2025 was Tim Hodgson’s first election to the House of Commons.
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
Markham—Thornhill returned Mary Ng (Liberal Party of Canada) in 2021
Counts for Markham—Thornhill within its 2013 boundaries, used in 2019 and 2021; the 2025 election ran on a new map. 57% of Thornlea lived in it.
In 2019, Mary Ng had won the same riding with 54%. The 2021 count in Markham—Thornhill put Mary Ng (Liberal Party of Canada) first at 62%, with Melissa Felian (Conservative Party of Canada) 13,573 votes back. Turnout in Markham—Thornhill was 56% in 2021, against 63% nationally.
All 5 candidates in Markham—Thornhill, 2021
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mary Ng | Liberal Party of Canada | 23,709 | 61.5% |
| Melissa Felian | Conservative Party of Canada | 10,136 | 26.3% |
| Paul Sahbaz | New Democratic Party | 3,222 | 8.4% |
| Mimi Lee | Green Party of Canada | 813 | 2.1% |
| Ilia Pashaev | People's Party of Canada | 648 | 1.7% |
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
Markham council spends less 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.
York Region, the upper tier, spent another $2,226 per resident of its whole area, most of it on social services and child care. In 2024 the median among Ontario’s lower-tier municipalities was $1,901 a resident; Markham council spent $1,381. More goes to water, sewers and waste than to anything else: $509 a resident, 37% of all spending. It employs the equivalent of 1,208 full-time positions, or 3.3 for each thousand people. At 16%, property taxes count for less of the revenue than the 42% seen across the province. Debt Markham council owes over the long term came to $6.7M, $18 a resident, under the median of $440.
Every service line, 2024
| Service | 2024 | Per resident | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water, sewers and waste | $185.8M | $509 | 37% |
| Recreation and culture | $107.4M | $294 | 21% |
| Roads and transit | $72.5M | $198 | 14% |
| Police, fire and protection | $64.6M | $177 | 13% |
| General government | $52.7M | $144 | 10% |
| Planning and development | $21M | $57 | 4% |
| Social services and child care | $212K | $1 | 0% |
| Public health and paramedics | $18K | $0 | 0% |
Money: Financial Information Return 2024, Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
Markham council beside its neighbours
Residents (2021 Census) per council seat, head of council included, beside nearby municipalities; the tick is the provincial median.
The headline above gives the figure; the bars set Markham council beside nearby councils, with the provincial median as the tick.
Residents: 2021 Census; seats: the province’s council list
Having a say in how Thornlea 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 size. Every seat counts, the head of council’s too, against the population of the 2021 Census.
- Council money. The 2024 Financial Information Return, totals after adjustments by service, per resident with the return’s own population. A lower tier’s figures leave out its county’s or region’s spending, so lower tiers are compared only with lower tiers.
- Who holds each seat. Each MP’s name and party are Wikidata’s statements for the 45th Parliament, read in November 2026.
- Not on this page. Party control (most Canadian councils sit without parties, and the open lists record none) and band councils.
- Election results. Where the page says “today’s boundaries”, it means Elections Canada’s estimate of the 2021 vote on the 2023 ridings; every other count is official and on the 2013 map.
- Which riding. A riding is listed when 5% or more of the place’s 2021 Census residents live in it; the largest share comes first.
Questions about how Thornlea is run
Who is the MP for Thornlea?
Mostly Tim Hodgson (Liberal Party of Canada), MP for Markham—Thornhill; part of Thornlea is in Richmond Hill South, held by Vincent Ho.
Which party won Thornlea in the 2021 federal election?
The Liberal Party of Canada, with Mary Ng in Markham—Thornhill; since 2025 Tim Hodgson represents Markham—Thornhill.
Who is the MPP for Thornlea?
Parts of Thornlea are in Markham—Thornhill, Richmond Hill and Thornhill; the Legislative Assembly of Ontario’s site gives the MPP for each.
Who heads the council in Markham?
For the 2022–26 term, Markham council was led by Frank Scarpitti, elected mayor in October 2022.
How much does Markham council spend?
In 2024, Markham council spent $504.2M in all, for some 365,051 residents, of which $185.8M went on water, sewers and waste, the biggest line.
Which regional body is Markham part of?
The council of York Region sits above Markham’s and runs region-wide services, police and water among them.
How is Markham council elected?
Markham council: the mayor is chosen by the whole municipality, the councillors ward by ward.
What was the turnout in Thornlea?
It was 32.1% for Markham council in 2022, with Ontario’s municipalities at a median of 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).