Ontario’s Superior Court of Justice has ordered a full recount of all ballots cast in the Windsor-Tecumseh-Lakeshore riding during the recent federal election held on April 28. The decision follows a formal request from Liberal Party candidate Irek Kusmierczyk, a Canadian politician of Polish descent, who was seeking re-election.
OFFICIAL: Judicial Recount Granted in Windsor—Tecumseh—Lakeshore pic.twitter.com/43Zavpas94
— Irek Kusmierczyk (@Irek_K) May 9, 2025
Kusmierczyk lost to Conservative candidate Kathy Borrelli by a narrow margin of just 77 votes. Initially, Elections Canada reported a difference of 233 votes, but after corrections were applied, the gap narrowed significantly. An automatic recount is triggered when the difference between the top two candidates is less than one one-thousandth of all ballots cast—this race fell short of that threshold by just seven votes.
Kusmierczyk’s lawyer, Jeff Hewitt, argued in court that a number of ballots had been wrongly rejected despite clearly expressing voter intent. One example cited was a ballot marked with an “X” for Kusmierczyk, accompanied by the handwritten note: “Irek did a good job.”
In a statement, Borrelli said her team would not challenge the recount request and would fully cooperate with the process. “It’s important that voters have confidence in our democratic system,” she noted.
Kusmierczyk expressed hope that the recount would bring full clarity to the election outcome in the riding. He emphasized the importance of strong local representation amid ongoing economic challenges.
Representatives of both candidates, along with officials from Elections Canada and Justice MacFarlane, are scheduled to meet on Monday, May 12, to determine the start date of the recount.