Another McCallion is on the ballot in mayoral byelection in Mississauga

Five people, including one whose surname is instantly recognizable to most Mississauga residents and others across the country, have officially registered for the race to become the next mayor of Canada’s seventh-largest city.

Peter McCallion, son of the late and iconic Hazel McCallion, who spent 36 years as mayor of Mississauga, registered with Mississauga officials on Wednesday afternoon to become a candidate in the mayoral byelection that will determine Bonnie Crombie’s successor.

As of shortly after 5 p.m. today, five candidates had officially registered with city election officials. The official nomination period opened at 3 p.m. this afternoon following the passing of a byelection bylaw earlier on Wednesday by city council.

The others who have registered to run are Mississauga city councillors Stephen Dasko (Ward 1), Alvin Tedjo (Ward 2) and Carolyn Parrish (Ward 5), in addition to Mississauga business owner Peter Tolias.

Ward 7 Coun. Dipika Damerla is also expected to throw her hat into the byelection ring.

Former mayoral candidates George Tavares and David Shaw have also reportedly said they’ll enter the race to fill the vacant mayor’s seat, but they had yet to officially register as of late this afternoon.

Peter McCallion ran unsuccessfully for the Ward 9 seat in the 2022 municipal election. That race was won by Martin Reid.

Nominations will close on April 26, at 2 p.m., and the mayoral byelection campaign will then follow until election night on June 10.

The winner will become the seventh mayor of Mississauga, following Robert Speck (1968-72), Chic Murray (1972-73), Martin Dobkin (1973-76), Ron Searle (1976-78), Hazel McCallion (1978-2014) and Crombie (2014-24).

Parrish is resigning her seat on council in order to run for mayor, the only councillor so far to do so. Her last day is March 15 and her resignation will likely be followed by a byelection to fill the Ward 5 vacancy.

Crombie left her post as Mississauga mayor on Jan. 12 to grab the reins of the Ontario Liberal Party. She had earlier taken a leave from the city back in October and councillors since then have been taking turns serving as acting mayor.

In order to qualify as a candidate to succeed her, according to the city, mayoral byelection hopefuls must be:

• a Canadian citizen
• at least 18 years old
• a resident of Mississauga or owner or tenant of property in Mississauga or the spouse of an owner or tenant of property in the city

In order to run, candidates also must not be prohibited from doing so under the Municipal Elections Act or other law.

Each candidate must also pay a $200 nomination fee to the city.

For those interested in running, the city will host a free candidate information session on March 26 from 6 to 10 p.m. at city hall. Participants can also participate virtually.

There had been speculation Mississauga Ward 8 Coun. Matt Mahoney might enter the race, but he put an end to the idea with the release of a statement last week.

However, the councillor didn’t rule out a future run for the position.

“After careful consideration with my family, friends and hundreds of residents across Mississauga, I have made the tough decision not to run for the job of mayor of Mississauga in the upcoming byelection,” Mahoney, whose mother, Katie Mahoney, was a longtime member of Mississauga council, said in his statement. “While I may not be pursuing the mayor position at this time, I am not ruling out a run at a future date.”

Mahoney’s father, Steve Mahoney, is a veteran of provincial and federal politics and ran unsuccessfully for Mississauga mayor in 2014, finishing second to Crombie.