Jackson leads, Brown a no-show
BRAMPTON, ON, Oct. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- For years Patrick Brown has made headlines across Canada with a leadership resignation, an ethics ruling, a disqualification from a federal leadership race and a city council so divided it could not meet [3][4][5][6]. Now, with advance voting under way, Brampton residents are making news of their own, and they are asking the media to pay attention.
In a Rosedale community Association poll conducted from September 29 to October 8, 2026, and shared in 87 Brampton community groups via Opinion Stage, 62 percent of respondents said they would vote for Wesley Jackson if the election were held today. Prabh Gill placed second at 19 percent. Incumbent Mayor Patrick Brown placed third at 12 percent.
Jackson didn't just win. He came first in every area of the city, North, South, East and West.
"This isn't one neighbourhood talking. It's the whole city," said Debora Vance, who organized the poll. "Every community poll I've seen in every ward tells the same story. Brampton is ready for change. Yet if you turn on the local news, it's the Toronto mayor's race and the Mississauga mayor's race. Brampton is one of the fastest-growing cities in Canada, and we are now bigger than Mississauga. Why isn't anyone talking about us?"
THE EMPTY CHAIR
While his challengers face voters' questions, the mayor has stayed away. Brown did not attend the Brampton Board of Trade debate on October 5, where candidates waited 30 to 45 minutes before going ahead without him. The next day he missed two more debates, one where a sign reading Mayor Patrick Brown sat on an empty seat. At the Brampton Arts Organization debate on September 15, he spoke briefly and left before questions [10].
"Patrick Brown is allergic to transparency," said mayoral candidate Prabh Gill after one of the debates [10]. Wesley Jackson put it this way. "It's his obligation to be there, unless there's a really good reason why he can't be" [10].
"He won't stand on a stage and answer questions from the public, but he'll show up to give speeches to small groups in the South Asian community and nowhere else," said Vance. "Brampton is the most diverse city in the country. A mayor should be accountable to all of it."
WHY THIS POLL IS DIFFERENT
The last published scientific poll of the Brampton mayor's race, by Liaison Strategies, was conducted October 22 to 23, 2025, a full year before the election. It surveyed 800 residents by automated phone call [8]. That poll did not include Wesley Jackson or Prabh Gill. Voters were offered only Patrick Brown, Nikki Kaur, Bob Singh or someone else [8]. Even then, Brown had the support of just 43 percent of all respondents, with 14 percent undecided [8]. The report breaks results down by gender and age only, weights them to the 2021 census and does not say whether the survey was offered in any language other than English [8].
Brampton is one of the most diverse cities in Canada. In the 2021 census, 80.6 percent of residents identified as a visible minority, and more than half are of South Asian heritage [9].
This poll reached residents through outreach in Punjabi, Hindi, Gujarati, Tamil, Spanish, Filipino, Vietnamese and English, through community groups serving Brampton's South Asian, Tamil, Filipino, Mexican, Colombian, Vietnamese and other communities. Every response came from a different internet address, so no one could vote more than once.
"The only professional poll of this race is a year old, and it didn't even include the candidates who are leading today," said Vance. "An online poll inside a single Facebook group, where people can vote as many times as they like, can't tell you what Brampton thinks either. I made the effort to reach every community in its own language, one vote per person, and we heard back from each of them. Their answer was the same. Change."
A CITY TOO BIG TO IGNORE
According to Statistics Canada estimates reported in January 2025, Brampton's population reached 791,486, passing Mississauga's 780,747 and making Brampton the third-largest city in Ontario [1][2]. Between 2016 and 2021 Brampton grew 10.6 percent, the fastest rate among Canada's 25 most populous municipalities [1].
WHAT VOTERS ARE SAYING
When asked the main reason for their vote, respondents gave one answer more than any other. Change. Close behind were integrity, accountability and transparency at City Hall. In their own words:
"Brampton needs a mayor with integrity and a plan to get things done."
"Brampton needs lots of new infrastructure, housing, hospital, university."
THE RECORD VOTERS REMEMBER
Patrick Brown arrived in Brampton politics in 2018, months after resigning as leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party amid allegations of sexual misconduct, which he has denied. He was elected mayor that October [3]. That same year, Ontario's Integrity Commissioner found he had deliberately failed to disclose rental income and a $375,000 loan from a party candidate [4].
At City Hall, a 2022 city report found $629,000 had gone to four vendors tied to a proposed Brampton university, with staff unable to locate the final product for five deliverables. Most of the money went to a firm that employed a close associate of Brown [5]. Council ordered a forensic investigation. In August 2022, before it was finished, council voted 5 to 4 on Brown's motion to shut it down [7]. That summer council was so deadlocked that meeting after meeting could not go ahead [5][6]. Brown has denied wrongdoing and called his critics politically motivated [5].
"Brampton has lived with a lack of transparency about spending and backroom alliances on council for too long," said Vance. "Residents deserve to know how their money is spent. They're ready for a mayor who will tell them."
ABOUT THE POLL
The poll is a microcosm of Brampton. It is a small sample, open only to people on Facebook and Instagram, and not a scientific poll. But it reached 87 community groups representing the city's many cultures, neighbourhoods and interests, with outreach to each community in its own language, and allowed one response per internet address. It was kept open longer to make sure North and East Brampton were fully heard. Among respondents who said where they live, 31 percent were from Brampton West, 27 percent from South, 23 percent from North and 18 percent from East.
About Rosedale Community Association
Rosedale is a community in Brampton's historic district where residents are committed to maintaining community standards. It is home to families with young children and seniors, with a high percentage of Brampton's original historic homes and a mix of owned and rental housing. Residents respect and listen to each other for the good of the whole community.
Media Contact
Debora Vanxe, Rosedale Community Association, 1 R374393776, [email protected]
SOURCE Community Association
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