As part of our ongoing coverage of the 2025 Federal Election, our newsroom will be highlighting each of Niagara’s four ridings, their candidates, and how those ridings have changed compared to the last election.
Today – we’re focusing on the riding of Niagara South.
The riding – formerly known as Niagara Centre since 2015, and as Welland before that, is held by Liberal candidate Vance Badawey. The riding is gaining from Fort Erie and Niagara Falls, while losing its territory in the City of St. Catharines to the Niagara West and St. Catharines ridings.
The riding is currently held by Liberal candidate Vance Badawey.
Running opposite Badawey are a number of familiar faces in the Niagara Region when it comes to politics, however none have run in the riding in the past.
Badawey won the Niagara Centre seat in 2021 with 35% of the vote, narrowly defeating then-Conservative candidate Graham Speck, who received just over 31%. He is a former Mayor of Port Colborne, and also served on Niagara Regional Council.
Conservative candidate Fred Davies, a local business leader, has served as a school board trustee and currently serves on Niagara Regional Council, while his website boasts his hands-on approach to business. Davies has previously run for the Ontario Progressive Conservatives in the 2022 Ontario election, garnering over 15,000 votes.
Chantal McCollum, the NDP’s candidate, is a lawyer. She’s highlighted healthcare in the riding as a priority, as communities are currently poised to see changes to their health sites with the opening of the new South Niagara Hospital in Niagara Falls.
The Green Party’s Natashia Bergen works as a cannabis grow technician, and also ran for the Green Party of Ontario in February’s provincial election, finishing with over 1200 votes.
Peter Taras of the People’s Party of Canada holds a master’s degree in organic chemistry, and ran for the party in the Niagara Falls riding in 2021, receiving nearly 6000 votes.
David Vedova is the candidate for the Christian Heritage Party of Canada. He was raised in the Niagara Region, and according to the party’s website, became a believer of Jesus Chris seven years ago before joining the party.
Historically this riding, and the iterations of it before it became Niagara South, has been represented on Parliament Hill by the Liberal Party, who have controlled the seat for 89 of the last 100 years.
Our Riding Profiles continue tomorrow with Niagara West.
(Written by: Matt Latour)
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