Nate Erskine-Smith to run for Toronto city council

Former federal minister and Liberal MP Nate Erskine-Smith has announced his candidacy for a Toronto city council seat in the upcoming fall municipal election. Erskine-Smith will run for the Ward 19 Beaches-East York seat.

Erskine-Smith, a former lawyer, first entered federal politics in 2015. He served as the Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and continued in the role under Prime Minister Mark Carney. He was removed from the cabinet following the 2025 federal election.

His move to municipal politics follows an unsuccessful attempt to secure the Ontario Liberal nomination for the Scarborough Southwest riding. Erskine-Smith had challenged the results of that nomination process, alleging voting irregularities, but an arbitration panel upheld the original outcome. He resigned his seat in the House of Commons last month.