He was a Progressive Conservative member the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1963 to 1975 who represented the riding of Armourdale.
His first political effort was campaigning on behalf of the first Co-operative Commonwealth Federation MP elected in Canada, Joe Noseworthy, in 1942.
[5] During his first term as an MPP, Carton criticized the policies of his own government when it came to treating property owners adjacent to new or expanded highways.
[6] As a result of an extremely controversial speech he gave in the Ontario Legislature, the government reversed its policies and began to offer compensation to property owners adversely affected by highway construction.
[7] Carton supported Bill Davis for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario in January 1971.