Ontario Premier Doug Ford of the Progressive Conservative Party was re-elected Thursday night. His party won a majority mandate from Ontarians. Ontario voters followed the tradition, usually giving their premiers at least two terms.
The Conservative leader spent most of his campaign away from cameras and reporters, as did his candidates, who turned down most interviews and participated in few local debates. While the tactic didn’t sit well with some, it did at least have the expected results for the Conservatives, who were ahead in the polls from start to finish of the campaign.
The party campaigned without a numerical platform for a second election in a row. The government released its budget a week before the election was called and pushed projects in it, such as highway construction, throughout the campaign. “Ontarians are going to have their say on the budget on Election Day,” Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy said in May.
The construction of Highway 413, a highway north of Toronto, was the Conservatives’ key idea during this campaign. According to Doug Ford, motorists could save up to 30 minutes by using the freeway. Internal Department of Transportation documents obtained by the Toronto Star, however, contradict this assessment.
A new approach
During the campaign, Doug Ford has played in the flowerbeds of the NDP, the official opposition at Queen’s Park for the past four years. The Conservative leader organized a rally in Hamilton, Andrea Horwath’s hometown, during the last week of the campaign. He also courted the labor movement, usually loyal to progressive parties.
The Conservative leader won the support of eight unions during the campaign and positioned his party as the best placed to defend Ontario workers. “Ms. Horwath, you are out of touch with the workers of the province,” Doug Ford said during the leaders’ debate. According to specialists of the labor movement, only 5% of the unions, however, lined up behind the party.
Thousands of public sector employees also demonstrated against Law 124 during the month of May. The bill introduced in 2019 capped salary increases for nurses, among others, for three years. NDP Leader Andrea Horwath has promised to repeal the law if she is elected premier.
The future of opponents
If Doug Ford is likely to go home smiling, it is less certain for his opponents. New Democrat Andrea Horwath is in her fourth election as leader and has never been elected to office. She got her best result in 2018. At a press conference this week, the politician said she would “wait to see who Ontarians choose to vote for” before deciding on her future.
For his part, Liberal Leader Steven Del Duca has hinted that he is not going anywhere, regardless of the outcome of the election. His party is starting from afar: after having been in power for fifteen years, the reds won only seven seats in the last election. Steven Del Duca had to hunt the ghosts of his party during the campaign. His team was “new” he repeated throughout the month of May.
Infatuation?
According to a poll by the firm Ipsos one week before election day, 45% of Ontario voters expected Premier Doug Ford to be re-elected. This impression among the population and the Conservative strategy of campaigning in the shadows and Ontario’s political culture could reduce the turnout rate compared to 2018. Just under 57% of voters exercised their right to vote four years ago .
Nearly 10% of voters have already voted in advance for 10 days this year. Nearly 7% of Ontarians had spoken the same way over a five-day period.
This story is supported by the Local Journalism Initiative, funded by the Government of Canada.