Ted Hsu

Ted Hsu
Born	Theodore Hsu (1964-03-04) March 4, 1964 Bartlesville, Oklahoma, U.S.
Other names	徐正陶
Occupation(s)	Physicist, politician
Years active	2011–present (politics)
Known for	Member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for Kingston and the Islands; former Member of Parliament for Kingston and the Islands

Theodore (Ted) Hsu (pronounced "shoe"; Chinese: 徐正陶; born March 4, 1964) is a Canadian physicist and politician currently representing Kingston and the Islands in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario since 2022 as a member of the Ontario Liberal Party. Previously, he was the federal Member of Parliament for the same constituency from 2011 until 2015, affiliated with the Liberal Party of Canada. On May 28, 2023, Hsu declared his intention to run in the 2023 Ontario Liberal Party leadership election, where he was eliminated during the initial ballot.

Early life and career

Hsu was born in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, in 1964 to parents James and Marjorie. As the eldest of three children with Chinese heritage, he grew up bilingual in English, French, and Mandarin. When he was six months old, his family moved to Kingston, Ontario after his father accepted a position as a chemical engineering professor at Queen's University.

He completed his secondary education at Loyalist Collegiate and Vocational Institute in Kingston before earning a Bachelor of Science with Honours in physics from Queen's University in 1984. Hsu then pursued doctoral studies at Princeton University, obtaining his PhD in physics in 1989. His dissertation focused on high temperature superconductors under the supervision of Nobel Prize winner Philip W. Anderson. Following his doctorate, he engaged in postdoctoral research at facilities in Chalk River, Vancouver, and France.

Shifting into finance, Hsu utilized his mathematical and computational skills working as a researcher and trader for Banque Nationale de Paris in both Paris and Philadelphia. He later held the role of executive director at Morgan Stanley’s Tokyo branch.

Dedicated to sustainable economic initiatives, Hsu has been actively involved with SWITCH, a Kingston nonprofit organization that fosters local employment opportunities and environmentally responsible growth. Between 2007 and 2011, he served as SWITCH’s executive director and spearheaded Kingston’s inaugural Greenhouse Gas Inventory project.

Politics

From 2007 to 2010, Hsu acted as treasurer for the Kingston and the Islands Federal Liberal Association while also contributing to its policy committee. He supported John Gerretsen’s provincial Liberal campaign in 2007 and Peter Milliken’s federal Liberal campaign in 2008; Milliken holds the record as the longest-serving Speaker of the House of Commons. After Milliken announced his retirement in 2010, Hsu secured the Liberal nomination in November to represent the party in the 2011 federal election.

In Parliament

In the federal election held on May 2, 2011, Hsu narrowly defeated Conservative candidate Alicia Gordon by a margin under 3,000 votes. His victory made him one of only two newly elected Liberal MPs during what was historically one of the party’s worst electoral performances.

Bringing an academic scientific perspective to politics, Hsu was appointed as critic for science and technology within the Liberal shadow cabinet. He also took on critic responsibilities for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario and the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario. In August 2013, Liberal leader Justin Trudeau expanded Hsu’s portfolio to include critic for post-secondary education.

Hsu received notable accolades early in his parliamentary career: he was named first runner-up to Conservative MP Chris Alexander for Maclean's Rookie of the Year award in 2011 and was again runner-up for Rising Star in 2012. In 2013, fellow parliamentarians voted him Maclean's Parliamentarian of the Year for outstanding representation of constituents.

In August 2014, Hsu announced he would not run for re-election in 2015, citing concerns about balancing political responsibilities with family life.

Prior to departing federal politics, Hsu introduced private member's Bill C-626 in September 2014 aiming to establish a chief statistician position and reinstate the long-form census that had been discontinued in 2010. The long-form census was ultimately restored following the election of the new Liberal government in 2015. Additionally, Hsu advocated for bringing back elements of the Canadian Prison Farm System, which saw partial reinstatement in 2019.

Post-Parliament

Following his departure from the House of Commons, Hsu took on the role of campaign manager for Liberal candidates, including MPP Sophie Kiwala in the 2018 Ontario provincial election and MP Mark Gerretsen during the 2019 Canadian federal election, successfully helping Gerretsen secure re-election.

In 2017, Hsu became an advisor for SYNG Pharmaceuticals, a biotechnology startup based in Kingston focused on the diagnosis and treatment of endometriosis, where he contributed communications expertise.

Between 2019 and 2020, he served as co-chair of the Mayor's Task Force on Housing, which developed strategic recommendations aimed at alleviating Kingston’s housing crisis.

Return to politics and Ontario Liberal leadership campaign

In 2020, Hsu declared his intention to seek the Ontario Liberal Party nomination for Kingston and the Islands, ultimately defeating former MPP Sophie Kiwala. He highlighted his concerns about the prospects for younger generations and underscored his background collaborating with scientists, economists, and entrepreneurs. He was subsequently elected in the 2022 Ontario general election.

Hsu has held critic portfolios for the Ontario Liberals covering Energy, Natural Resources and Forestry, Mines, Citizenship, and Multiculturalism. As of February 28, 2024, his critic responsibilities include Energy, Natural Resources, and Agricultural and Rural Issues.

He competed in the 2023 Ontario Liberal leadership race but was eliminated after the first ballot with 10% support, placing fourth behind winner Bonnie Crombie as well as Nathaniel Erskine-Smith and Yasir Naqvi.

In the 2025 Ontario Provincial Election, Hsu was re-elected with over 61% of votes cast—a 24 percentage point increase compared to 2022—marking both the largest victory margin in Ontario that year and a record high in his constituency’s history. This outcome also represented the strongest performance by the Ontario Liberals in that election cycle.

External links

• Ted Hsu