Photo: Jason Zhang · CC0One councillor per 28,580 residents: Markham is more thinly represented than 97% of Ontario municipalities
Underwood sends one MP to Ottawa from Markham—Thornhill, its riding (a federal electoral district, which elects one MP): Tim Hodgson (Liberal Party of Canada). Provincially, Underwood votes in Markham—Thornhill; the open record doesn’t name its MPP (Member of Provincial Parliament, at Queen’s Park in Toronto) in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, so the legislature’s own list is linked below. As a neighbourhood of Markham, Underwood 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.
What stands out in how Underwood is governed
Many residents per seat
Markham council spreads its seats over a big population; the typical municipality in Ontario has one seat per 1,540 residents. Council size ↓
Low spending per resident
Spending per resident left Markham council below 83% of Ontario’s lower-tier municipalities in 2024. 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
Underwood 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 Underwood, from the most recent elections.
- 1Markham councilelected October 2022Frank Scarpitti
- 2Legislative Assembly of OntarioMarkham—Thornhill
- 3House of CommonsMarkham—Thornhill
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 |
Frank Scarpitti won 64% of the votes cast for mayor. Councillors on Markham council are elected by ward, the mayor by the whole municipality.
Councils: Ontario 2022 Municipal Election data, MMAH (OGL-Ontario)
Underwood 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 Underwood voted: same source as Councillors, above.
When Underwood 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 open federal catalogue ends at 2021; the 2025 results sit on elections.ca under terms that bar commercial use. 28 October 2030 is the next council election in Markham, fixed by the Municipal Elections Act, 1996 for the fourth Monday in October every four years. The Legislative Assembly of Ontario was last elected on 27 February 2025, and the House of Commons on 28 April 2025.
Election dates: the legislatures, MMAH and MAMH
Underwood votes in Markham—Thornhill 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 ↗Southern Ontario’s ridings are the 2013 federal ones by statute, which is how this page places the town. Markham—Thornhill takes in Underwood and elects its MPP to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.
Southern Ontario ridings: the 2013 federal boundaries (Representation Act, 2015), Statistics Canada
Tim Hodgson represents Markham—Thornhill in Ottawa
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
en.wikipedia.org ↗- Liberal Party of Canada71
- Conservative Party of Canada50
As Wikidata records them.
Of the 122 MPs from Ontario, 71 are with the Liberal Party of Canada, Tim Hodgson among them.
The MP’s record
Tim Hodgson is new to Parliament, first elected in the April 2025 vote. Had the 2021 ballots been cast in today’s Markham—Thornhill, the Liberal Party of Canada would have led with 62%; Tim Hodgson held it for them 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
Mary Ng kept Markham—Thornhill for the Liberal Party of Canada in 2021
Markham—Thornhill as it stood from 2013: the 2019 and 2021 counts, before the riding was redrawn for 2025.
Turnout in Markham—Thornhill was 56% in 2021, against 63% nationally. 13,573 votes separated Mary Ng (Liberal Party of Canada) from Melissa Felian (Conservative Party of Canada) in Markham—Thornhill in 2021, when the winner took 62%. Mary Ng already held it after the 2019 election, won with 54%.
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.
Markham council carried $6.7M of long-term debt, $18 per resident against a typical $440. Property taxes and payments in lieu brought in 16% of revenue, against 42% across the province’s returns. Full-time staff number 1,208, about 3.3 to every thousand residents. No service costs more than water, sewers and waste, at $509 per resident and 37% of the total. In 2024 the median among Ontario’s lower-tier municipalities was $1,901 a resident; Markham council spent $1,381. On top of that comes York Region: $2,226 a resident across its area, led by social services and child care.
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 bars put the headline’s figure for Markham 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 Underwood 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
- Election results. The 2019 and 2021 figures are Elections Canada’s official counts on the ridings drawn in 2013; the “today’s boundaries” figures are its transposition of the 2021 vote onto the 2023 ridings, an estimate built from polling divisions.
- Which riding. Each place is put in its ridings by where its 2021 Census residents live; a riding holding 5% or more of them is listed.
- Who holds each seat. Who holds each seat is read from Wikidata, so a very recent change in the Commons may not appear yet.
- Not on this page. Band councils, and which party runs the council: the open lists carry no party, and most councils have none.
- Council money. Per resident means the 2024 Financial Information Return’s totals over the population it reports. Since a county or region spends in its lower tiers too, those are compared only with each other.
- Council size. The 2021 Census population is shared over all council seats, including the head of council’s, for this ratio.
Questions about how Underwood is run
Who is the MP for Underwood?
Underwood is in Markham—Thornhill, represented by Tim Hodgson (Liberal Party of Canada).
Which party won Underwood 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 Underwood?
Underwood votes in Markham—Thornhill; the Legislative Assembly of Ontario’s members page gives its current MPP.
Who heads the council in Markham?
In October 2022, Frank Scarpitti won the post of mayor for Markham council’s 2022–26 term.
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?
By ward for councillors and at large for the mayor, on Markham council.
What was the turnout in Underwood?
In October 2022, turnout for Markham council was 32.1%, against 35.5% for the typical Ontario municipality.
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).