Chandra Pasma

Chandra Pasma (born September 7, 1979)^[3] is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in the 2022 provincial election.^[4] She represents the district of Ottawa West—Nepean as a member of the Ontario New Democratic Party.^[5]

Chandra Pasma MPP
Pasma in 2022
Member of the Ontario Provincial Parliament for Ottawa West—Nepean
Incumbent
Assumed office June 2, 2022
Preceded by	Jeremy Roberts
Critic, Poverty, Homelessness Reduction, and Education[1]
Incumbent
Assumed office July 13, 2022
Leader	Peter Tabuns (interim) Marit Stiles
Personal details
Born	(1979-09-07) September 7, 1979 (age 45)
Political party	Ontario New Democratic Party
Spouse	Matt Helleman[2]
Children	3
Residence(s)	Qualicum-Graham Park, Ottawa
Occupation	Researcher/Policy Analyst

Background

Before her election as MPP for Ottawa West—Nepean, Pasma worked as a public policy researcher for the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE). Her published research included an investigation into state of paramedic services in Ontario,^[6] and the rising use of contract labour in Canadian universities.^[7][8]

She also previously served as an advisor to the federal New Democratic Party.^{[citation needed]}

Pasma has also worked for Citizens for Public Justice, and prior to that worked for Conservative MP Dave MacKenzie until 2006.^[9]

Political career

Pasma first ran for political office in the 2018 Ontario election in Ottawa West—Nepean. Although she was narrowly defeated by Jeremy Roberts, it was then the ONDP's strongest result in the constituency.

In the 2022 election, Pasma and Roberts would have a rematch of their 2018 contest. This time, she was elected with 15,696 votes (37.54%), marking the first time the Ontario NDP had won the constituency. Pasma was also the only candidate in Ontario who defeated an incumbent conservative in what was otherwise a successful election for the ruling Progressive Conservative Party. Her campaign emphasized access to healthcare and housing affordability.^[10]

In September 2022, Pasma criticized the government for providing insufficient income support to the disabled. That month she published an op-ed in the Ottawa Citizen as part of her campaign to increase the Ontario Disability Support Program.^[11]

On July 13, 2022 Pasma was named as the Official Opposition critic for poverty and homelessness reduction by interim ONDP leader Peter Tabuns.^[12] She was later made education critic after Marit Stiles resigned to run for the 2023 Ontario New Democratic Party leadership election. In this role, Pasma has criticized the Progressive Conservative government for underfunding education as well as for poor air and water quality in school buildings.^{[13][14][15][16]} In October 2023, she co-sponsored Bill 140, which aimed to improve air quality in daycares and schools.^[17][18] She has also advocated for resources to address growing violence in schools.^[19][20]

On November 23, 2022 Pasma put forward a private member's bill, Protecting Human Rights in an Emergency Act which would require apartment buildings to possess emergency generators capable of powering water pumps and elevators.^[21] The bill was prompted by the impacts of the May 2022 Canadian derecho in Ottawa; which left many apartment residents without water for over ten days, and trapped residents with mobility issues.^[22][23] The bill was defeated on second reading by a vote of 30-66; being opposed by the majority Progressive Conservative government.^[24]

In the 2023 Ontario New Democratic Party leadership election Pasma endorsed Marit Stiles in her successful bid for leadership of the party; replacing outgoing leader Andrea Horwath.^[25]

On December 4th, 2023, Pasma was among 333 Canadians permanently banned from entering the Russian Federation. This was as a consequence of Pasma's support of Canadian sanctions against Russia, in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.^[26]

Electoral record

v t e 2025 Ontario general election: Ottawa West—Nepean
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	New Democratic	Chandra Pasma	20,087	49.33	+11.79
	Progressive Conservative	Husien Abu-Rayash	11,697	28.72	–6.22
	Liberal	Brett Szmul	7,229	17.75	–4.69
	Green	Sophia Andrew-Joiner	976	2.40	–1.13
	New Blue	Rylan Vroom	733	1.80	N/A
Total valid votes/expense limit			40,722	99.34	+0.76
Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots			271	0.66	–0.76
Turnout			40,993	45.32	–2.10
Eligible voters			90,450
	New Democratic hold		Swing		+9.01
Source(s) "Vote Totals From Official Tabulation" (PDF). Elections Ontario. 2025-03-02.

v t e 2022 Ontario general election: Ottawa West—Nepean
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	New Democratic	Chandra Pasma	15,696	37.54	+5.06	$125,025
	Progressive Conservative	Jeremy Roberts	14,610	34.94	+2.12	$90,418
	Liberal	Sam Bhalesar	9,384	22.44	−6.86	$67,587
	Green	Steven Warren	1,475	3.53	−0.30	$4,298
	Ontario Party	Vilteau Delvas	649	1.55		$5,110
Total valid votes/expense limit			41,814	98.58	-0.34	$127,707
Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots			601	1.42	+0.34
Turnout			42,415	47.42	-9.62
Eligible voters			91,223
	New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative		Swing		+1.47
Source(s) "Summary of Valid Votes Cast for Each Candidate" (PDF). Elections Ontario. 2022. Archived from the original on 2023-05-18. "Statistical Summary by Electoral District" (PDF). Elections Ontario. 2022. Archived from the original on 2023-05-21.

v t e 2018 Ontario general election: Ottawa West—Nepean
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Progressive Conservative	Jeremy Roberts	16,590	32.82	−1.06
	New Democratic	Chandra Pasma	16,415	32.48	+18.06
	Liberal	Bob Chiarelli	14,810	29.30	−15.54
	Green	Pat Freel	1,937	3.83	−2.35
	None of the Above	Colin A. Pritchard	542	1.07
	Libertarian	Nicholas Paliga	251	0.50	-0.18
Total valid votes			50,545	98.92
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots			552	1.08	-0.43
Turnout			51,097	57.04	+1.10
Eligible voters			89,575
	Progressive Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing		+7.24
Source: Elections Ontario[27]