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2025 Federal Election Candidates Meeting For Toronto Centre Riding
On Wednesday April 30, 2025, three candidates running for federal elections in the riding of Toronto Centre, met at the Daniels Spectrum Arts Centre in Regent Park, to share their platforms and to answer questions from the Toronto Downtown East Community.
Adonis Huggins – Local Journalism Initiative
The full house event was hosted by the Community Civic Engagement Collaborative (CCEC), a non-partisan collective working to increase civic engagement in elections and beyond, through non-partisan community organizing. The CCEC represents agencies, grassroots groups and residents living and working in the Toronto Downtown East communities notably Regent Park, St. James Town and Moss Park. The three candidates were Olivia Ihem from the Green Party ( an environmental scientist), Samatha Green from the NDP (a healthcare physician), and Evan Soloman
(a political journalist). Unfortunately, the Conservative candidate, Luis Ibarra, withdrew his participation from the event. The two moderators of the event were Humaira Rhman, a resident from Regent Park, and Anushen Salvasegar, a resident from St. James Town. The on-line Zoom chat moderators were Fazia Abdul Muneem and Joel Klassen. The audience questions for the evening was coordinated by Adonis Huggins, of RPTV - Focus Media Arts Centre.
After a welcome and land acknowledgement, each candidate gave a short introduction, took questions from the audience on a wide range of issues including:
Addressing Indigenous and Anti-Black Racism; Affordable Housing and increased Rent Geared to Housing Units in Regent Park and the City of Toronto; Improving the Health Care System; Support for HIV positive individuals; Investment in Youth Employment and Raising Miniman Wage; Investment in Education and Post-Secondary Education; Community Safety; Responding to Donald Trump's Tariffs; Addressing Climate Change and the Need for Renewable Energy; Concerns about AI Technology; Conflicts of Interests; Support for Newcomers and Immigration; and Investment in Transportation including a High Speed Rail Line. One of the most persistent question that kept coming up was about Genocide, the Conflict in Gaza and the support for a Two State Solution.
The successful two-hour event drew a diverse crowd of 130 people along with an additional 30 people on Zoom. The CCEC is pleased to have presented a highly informative event to voters that is sure to increase resident engagement in the upcoming election.
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FOCUS Media Arts Centre (FOCUS) is a not-for-profit organization that was established in 1990 to counter negative media stereotypes of low income communities and provide relevant information to residents living in the Regent Park area and surrounding communities.
We seek to empower marginalized individuals and under represented communities to have a voice, through the use of professional training, mentorships and participatory based media practices that enable the sharing of stories, experiences and perspectives on relevant matters and issues. In brief our mandate is to empower marginalized individuals and under-serviced communities to have a voice and tell their own stories.
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