Wynne wins Ontario liberal race

Former education minister Kathleen Wynne is set to become Ontario’s first female and openly gay premier.

The 59-year-old Toronto politician has won the race to become the new leader of the Ontario Liberal party. She will replace Premier Dalton McGuinty who announced his surprise resignation in October and prorogued the parliament.

Wynne had been lagging behind former cabinet minister Sandra Pupatello in the first and second ballots, but with the backing of
three rivals who dropped out, she emerged as the winner with 1,150 votes.

Eric Hoskins, Charles Sousa and Gerard Kennedy – who also ran and lost to McGuinty in the last leadership convention in 1996 – all endorsed Wynne. Meanwhile, Harinder Takhar dropped out after the first ballot to throw his support behind Pupatello.