Ontario party leaders are scrambling to finalize their platforms and acquire enough nominees to complete a full roster of 124 candidates ahead of the upcoming election.
Premier Doug Ford on January 28 officially announced he was calling an early snap election — almost a year and a half ahead of the next scheduled vote.
Ontarians are set to head to the polls February 27, leaving party leaders less than a month to prepare. Ford had earlier indicated he felt confident to win even more than the 83 seats (roughly 41%) won in 2022.
The provincial NDP, led by Marit Stiles, presently has 31 seats, and the Liberals, led by Bonnie Crombie, have eight. The Greens, led by Mike Schreiner, have a single seat.
The New Blue Party of Ontario and the Ontario Party are also running candidates.
The four main party leaders are scheduled for a 90-minute debate on “northern issues” on February 14 in North Bay, hosted by the Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities. The debate, moderated by CBC Radio Morning North host Markus Schwabe, will be held at 1 p.m. ET at the Canadore College's G-Wing Theatres.
As Canada braces for impending 25% tariffs threats imposed by President Donald Trump, Ford, PC party leader, has suggested a strongarm approach is necessary to dealing with Canada-US relations.
The Government of Ontario has previously warned that if Trump follows through on his tariff threat, it would cost the province 500,000 jobs.
Ford when announcing the early snap election expressed confidence he will win an even stronger mandate than before, maybe even a supermajority. Such a mandate would be necessary should the province have to spend billions to stimulate the economy in the event of tariffs, he said.
The other provincial parties had already said they would support a stimulus package if Canada was hit with tariffs, and Ford therefore did not need a fresh mandate.
On Monday, Ford complained Trump stabbed Canada in the heart and that the northern country needs to “fight” Trump’s tariffs — tariffs that are now set to be imposed March 1, due to Canada’s weak border that allows hordes of illegal immigrants and drugs to flow into the US.
When Ford first called the snap election, Canada was operating under the impression Trump’s tariffs would be made official February 1, to go into effect February 4. The first several days of the campaign was therefore centered around the impending tariffs and what that would mean for Ontario.
Since Trump has given a brief reprieve from the tariff heat, Ontario party leaders have turned their focus to other matters like healthcare, housing and infrastructure.
Below is a roundup of where all the Ontario parties stand, according to their published platforms. The Green party told the Western Standard it does not yet have a platform, but will post it as soon as it’s finalized.
Healthcare is a hot topic issue in the province, with 2.5 million Ontarians living without access to a family doctor, by Ontario Medical Association estimate.
Ford’s PC government on January 27, the day before he went to the lieutenant-governor to request an election, announced $1.4 billion in new funding to match two million people with a family doctor by 2026, per the CBC.
Crombie’s Liberals have zeroed in on healthcare as a wedge issue, putting pressure on Ford in the legislature by listing ridings and the corresponding number of people living there without a doctor.
Crombie has promised under the Liberals, every person in Ontario will have access to a family doctor. She also earlier said the public funds Ford is spending on organizing the election could have been going to healthcare instead, reported Global News.
“He’s wasting $175 million on an early election instead of using it to fix our broken health care system and make your life more affordable,” said Crombie.
“As premier, I’ll deliver more for you by guaranteeing you’ll have a family doctor.”
The NDP has decried the province’s healthcare system, complaining of supply shortages in palliative care and other care facilities.
Ford in his 2022 campaign ran on housing issues, what he called back then the Ontario housing crisis. At the time, he promised to build 1.5 million homes by 2031, as well as lower the cost of housing.
Ford has fallen astonishingly short of that mark — not only has he built a fraction of the number he would need to be on track for his promise, having fallen short of his quote every year, in February 2024 he rewrote the definition of “home” to include long-term care beds and basement apartments.
The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Association estimates the average cost to rent a one-bedroom apartment in October 2022 was $1,474, but that it rose to $1,666 by October 2024.
“Ten years isn’t up yet,” replied Ford when asked about the sorry track record on his 1.5 million homes promise.
The other three main parties appear willing to try new tactics previously brushed off by the Ford government, such as allowing the construction of fourplex homes.
Crombie has ambiguous promised to “build” homes [Ontarians] can afford, and the NDP further is vying to build more public housing.
INFRASTRUCTURE
All four parties are campaigning on dealing with congestion issues in particular in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Toronto traffic is notorious for its painful delays, especially on the 401 highway, which runs south of the city.
The privately owned 407 highway, a toll-based route that runs north of the city, is almost always virtually empty due to the high cost.
The PCs have considered buying back the 407, while the NDP have promised they would if Stiles is elected. The Greens have also mulled it over. If the highway were to become public, the tolls would disappear, and Toronto would have two artery highways rather than one.
Further, Ford has said he plans to build a tunnelled expressway under Highway 401, per Global News.
The idea of bike lanes is debated much more hotly among the parties. Ford has pushed for the removal of three Toronto bike lanes, and a review of bike lanes in other major cities across the province.
All three other parties oppose Ford’s ideas.