# Michael Mantha

Michael E. Mantha is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was elected as New Democratic member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario until his removal from the Ontario NDP caucus on March 31, 2023, after which he sat as an independent. He was first elected in 2011. He represented the riding of Algoma—Manitoulin until his defeat in the 2025 Ontario general election.

## Background

Prior to his election, Mantha was a staffer in the riding office of Carol Hughes, the federal Member of Parliament for Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing. He lives in Elliot Lake, Ontario with his wife Pauline and their two sons.

## Politics

Mantha ran in the 2011 provincial election as the New Democratic candidate in the riding of Algoma—Manitoulin. He defeated Liberal incumbent Mike Brown by 4,188 votes. He was re-elected in the 2014 provincial election defeating Liberal candidate Craig Hughson by 7,668 votes. Mantha was re-elected in the 2022 Ontario general election.
He served the party's critic for a number of portfolios, including Northern Development and Mines, Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation and Northern Development and Tourism.
Mantha introduced several pieces of legislation, including a motion that was unanimously passed to create a lyme disease strategy in Ontario.
On April 1, 2023, Ontario NDP leader Marit Stiles removed Mantha from the caucus pending the results of an investigation into alleged misconduct involving a staffer. The decision was made after Stiles received an interim report on the allegations.
On August 15, 2023, Mantha was permanently removed from the NDP caucus after a third-party investigation found that the allegations of workplace misconduct levied against him were substantiated.
He stood for re-election as an independent but was defeated.

## Electoral record

vte2025 Ontario general election: Algoma—Manitoulin :
| The 2025 general election will be held on February 27. |||||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures |
| | Green | Maria Legault | | | |
| | Independent | Michael Mantha | | | |
| | Liberal | Reg Niganobe | | | |
| | New Blue | Sheldon Pressey | | | |
| | Progressive Conservative | Bill Rosenberg | | | |
| | New Democratic | David Timeriski | | | |
| Total valid votes/expense limit | Total valid votes/expense limit | Total valid votes/expense limit | |
| Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots | Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots | Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | |
vte2022 Ontario general election: Algoma—Manitoulin :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures |
| | New Democratic | Michael Mantha | 11,252 | 45.93 | −12.63 | $56,480 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Cheryl Fort | 8,692 | 35.48 | +11.03 | $39,185 |
| | Liberal | Tim Vine | 2,133 | 8.71 | +0.61 | $28,774 |
| | New Blue | Ron Koski | 1,302 | 5.31 | | $1,144 |
| | Green | Maria Legault | 764 | 3.12 | −0.39 | $381 |
| | Ontario Party | Frederick Weening | 356 | 1.45 | | $0 |
| Total valid votes/expense limit | Total valid votes/expense limit | Total valid votes/expense limit | 24,499 | 99.34 | +0.26 | $91,463 |
| Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots | Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots | Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots | 164 | 0.66 | -0.26 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 24,663 | 42.47 | -10.61 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 57,522 |
| | New Democratic hold | New Democratic hold | Swing | Swing | −11.83 |
| Source(s) "Summary of Valid Votes Cast for Each Candidate" (PDF). Elections Ontario. Archived from the original on May 18, 2023."Statistical Summary by Electoral District" (PDF). Elections Ontario. Archived from the original on May 21, 2023. |||||||
vte2018 Ontario general election: Algoma—Manitoulin :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Michael Mantha | 17,105 | 58.56 | +5.15 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Jib Turner | 7,143 | 24.45 | +7.15 |
| | Liberal | Charles Fox | 2,365 | 8.10 | –16.41 |
| | Northern Ontario | Tommy Lee | 1,366 | 4.68 | |
| | Green | Justin Tilson | 1,025 | 3.51 | +0.39 |
| | Libertarian | Kalena Mallon-Ferguson | 207 | 0.71 | –0.95 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 29,211 | 100.00 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | | 55.7 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 52,405 |
| | New Democratic hold | New Democratic hold | Swing | Swing | –1.22 |
| Source: Elections Ontario |||||||
vte2014 Ontario general election: Algoma—Manitoulin :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Michael Mantha | 14,171 | 53.41 | +8.89 |
| | Liberal | Craig Hughson | 6,504 | 24.51 | −3.91 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Jib Turner | 4,589 | 17.30 | −6.30 |
| | Green | Alexandra Zalucky | 828 | 3.12 | +0.49 |
| | Libertarian | Richard Hadidian | 441 | 1.66 | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 26,533 | 100.00 | +1.93 |
| Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | 327 | 1.22 | +0.71 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 26,860 | 49.38 | −0.05 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 54,395 | | +2.75 |
| | New Democratic hold | New Democratic hold | Swing | Swing | +6.40 |
| Source(s) Elections Ontario. "Official Return from the Records, 002 Algoma-Manitoulin" (PDF). Retrieved March 22, 2015. |||||||
2011 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Michael Mantha | 11,585 | 44.52 | +7.57 |
| | Liberal | Michael A. Brown | 7,397 | 28.42 | −14.14 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Joe Chapman | 6,141 | 23.60 | +9.58 |
| | Green | Jason Tilson | 684 | 2.63 | −2.52 |
| | Family Coalition | David Hoffman | 217 | 0.83 | -0.50 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 26,024 | 100.0 |
| Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | 134 | 0.51 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 26,158 | 49.43 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 52,919 |
| | New Democratic gain from Liberal | New Democratic gain from Liberal | Swing | Swing | +10.86 |
| Source: Elections Ontario |||||||