WELLINGTON-HALTON HILLS – Before every election, Wellington-Halton Hills MPP Ted Arnott said he always talked with his wife Lisa about whether or not he should run again.
That didn’t change through the course of 34 years, nine re-elections, riding boundary changes and getting the role of Speaker of the House.
What did change recently was his answer to that question.
Arnott announced in a written statement on Tuesday he would not seek re-election in the provincial election.
“There’s lots and lots of reasons that have to be considered but the fact is I think it’s time for me to depart,” Arnott said in a phone interview. “I plan to stay and continue as the MPP until the next election takes place and hopefully continue to serve as speaker until a new speaker is elected.”
Arnott said there were “probably 100 reasons” he decided not to run again but did not elaborate on them when asked in the interview.
Raised in Arthur and now living in Fergus, Arnott was first elected to provincial parliament in 1990. He was elected as Speaker of the House first in 2018 and re-elected to the role in 2022.
Looking back on more than 30 years, Arnott said he hoped he and his staff made a difference in residents’ lives every single day.
“I don’t look back at it with pride as much as a sense of appreciation that I’ve had this chance to serve because of the trust that people have given me through the years,” Arnott said. “I hope that we made a difference and that was always what motivated me to run in the first place and continued to encourage me to keep going.”
The now 61-year-old Arnott said he didn’t plan to retire and hoped for an interesting professional opportunity to follow but didn’t have anything lined up at the moment.
With the Progressive-Conservatives having a majority government, the next provincial election isn’t scheduled until June 2026 but there is talk of a potential early election which Arnott said is “speculation and rumour.”
Whenever the next election is, Arnott will be passing the torch to a new PC candidate.
“There’ll be a lot of very good people who will give consideration to running and people will probably come forward as candidates for all of the political parties,” Arnott said. “And then during a general election, the people of the riding will choose a certain member.”
