Election issues in Sudbury: From burgers to the ballot box

Deluxe Hamburgers has been around in Sudbury since the 1960s.

SUDBURY, Ont.– As part of CTV News’ coverage of the 37-day federal election, journalists will be telling stories from communities across the country to showcase issues that matter to Canadians in this election. Our next dispatch is from CTV News reporter John Vennavally-Rao in Sudbury, Ont.

It’s a must see for tourists passing through Sudbury: a giant nine-metre-wide replica of a five-cent coin known as the Big Nickel. It symbolizes the city’s rich mining history and vast deposits of nickel sulphide ore.

Money and financial concerns are on the minds of diners at local burger joint Deluxe Hamburgers, with its signature single arch. Dating back to the 1960s, it predates the arrival of McDonald’s in the area and with just days to go before the federal election, contending with U.S. President Donald Trump remains top of mind for most.

“Trump is the number one issue and until we fix him, the rest has to take second place,” says Tom Tario, who spent more than two decades working in a mine that descended nearly two kilometres underground. He worries about tariffs and the threat they pose to Canadian jobs.

Micheline Kappas shares his concerns, but says affordability is also top of mind. She retired five years ago from her job at the regional hospital but has since returned to work to help make ends meet.

“Oh yeah, cost of living is very important,” Kappas says. “Because I find everything is going up and our pay doesn’t go up to match the inflation.”

Another diner, Maureen Cruickshank, said she worries about housing and her 29-year-old son.

“I think it needs to be more affordable. It’s out of hand right now,” she said. “Young people including my son they can’t buy a house because it’s just too much money.”

Sudbury, home to around 180,000 people, also boasts a towering mural honouring longtime Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek, who was born in the city.

In another part of town, we met with Denise Sandul in front of a growing memorial for victims of Sudbury’s opioid crises. What started with a single cross in memory of her son Myles, who died from fentanyl drug poisoning in 2020, has grown to more than 260 crosses representing many more overdose victims in the area.

“I think we all need to make our vote count,” says Sandul. She’s calling for stronger federal support for treatment programs and shorter wait times.

“My son died in 2020, and things have gotten so much worse. The drugs are so much more toxic. This has to become a priority for all levels of government.”

Darren Ransom couldn’t agree more. He was an addict for 14 years and wants a state of emergency declared.

“I’m 39 years old and I have probably 100 friends I know that have passed away from overdosing on opiates and literally there’s no help out there,” says Ransom. “If you want to go to treatment, it takes three months to get in, or longer.”

Back at the Big Nickel, Sudbury Mayor Paul Lefebvre acknowledged the opioid crises, along with the local housing and healthcare challenges. He also wants more federal attention paid to the mining sector, which helps power the local economy.

He says more than 20,000 people in the Sudbury area work in mining, extracting and processing metals like nickel, copper and cobalt. Lefebvre says the oil and auto sector get a lot of support and he’d like to see something similar – including tax incentives – for critical mineral processing and creating a supply chain for EV batteries in Canada.

“At the end of the day these are great paying jobs,” says Lefebvre while noting China’s decision to effectively halt critical mineral exports to the Unites States.

“We do very little with mining, yet we know critical minerals are more important than ever.”