2 days in D.C. and a ‘poor-taste joke’: Get up to speed on the Ontario election

Congratulations, Ontario.

We’ve made it past the halfway point of our first winter election season in 142 years (no really, you can look it up).

It was a busy week on the campaign trail, so here’s a look back on a few of the biggest story lines. 

We’re keeping things simple here, but be sure to follow the links for deeper dives.

You may have thought we’d get a reprieve from the spectre of economic disaster after Canada and the U.S. agreed to a month-long pause on sweeping tariffs.

But there is apparently no rest for the weary, dear readers.

President Donald Trump dropped his newest tariff bomb from aboard Air Force One on Sunday. This time it was aimed at steel and aluminum. 

And just like that, tariffs were back in the campaign spotlight. 

The threat is clearly grim for Ontario generally but not necessarily such a bad thing for PC Leader Doug Ford’s campaign. Ford has made the fight against tariffs the central theme of his re-election bid, and public polling so far suggests the message has been effective.

What issues are catching the attention of voters this Ontario election?

From tariffs to healthcare, polling expert Éric Grenier breaks down the top issues among voters leading up to the provincial election.

Here’s how each of the major campaigns initially responded to Trump’s latest salvo.

And here’s a deeper dive into how each leader says they would confront tariffs more broadly. 

This week, Ford and Canada’s other premiers ventured into the belly of the beast to make the case against tariffs directly to lawmakers and policy folks in D.C.

The delegation secured a White House meeting with two Trump aides, possibly with the help of an $85,000-per-month lobbying firm.

The CBC’s Mike Crawley took a closer look at what Ford actually accomplished on the visit.

Premiers describe ‘constructive’ meeting with Trump officials in Washington

Several Canadian premiers discuss what came out of their meeting with officials from U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration at the White House. The premiers were in Washington on Wednesday to make the case against U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods.

The two-day trip caused some consternation on the campaign trail back home.

NDP Leader Marit Stiles and Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie say Ford used the visit for plainly partisan purposes. Both parties have asked the province’s integrity commissioner and Elections Ontario to investigate if Ford crossed any legal or ethical lines. 

The requests were instigated by a video posted to Ford’s social media accounts on Thursday, featuring clips from the trip and narration from the PC leader. An initial version included the Ontario PC logo at the end, as well as his campaign slogan, “Protect Ontario.”

Following criticism online, the original video was deleted and an edited version with the PC logo and slogan removed was re-posted to Ford’s account.

Just hours after the official deadline to register as an election candidate passed, the NDP’s candidate in the Toronto riding of Eglinton–Lawrence folded her campaign.

What’s more, Natasha Doyle-Merrick encouraged voters in the riding to support the Liberal candidate instead. Doyle-Merrick wrote in a statement that it’s a “clear two-party contest” and she is stepping aside in hopes of preventing another PC win.

The PCs took the riding by a margin of just over 500 votes in 2022. 

Doyle-Merrick’ timing was clearly deliberate and left the New Democrats no chance to replace her. Asked about it, the NDP Leader Stiles looked frustrated — to say the least.

The Liberals also revealed their candidate in Windsor West had dropped out, but provided no explanation.

In late January, unverified posts popped up online saying the PC leader had mused about reviving the death penalty during a speech to law enforcement.

Then on Thursday, Toronto Star reporters published Ford’s comment from that night, based on an audio recording they obtained.

“God forbid they kill an innocent person,” Ford said, referring to home invaders and his frustration with Canada’s bail laws.

“I don’t even go 25 years. I send ’em right to sparky and then we’ll take everything from there,” he said to sparse applause and a few gasps.

Ford’s campaign called the remark a “poor-taste joke out of frustration for the many people affected by violent criminals out on our streets.”

CTV’s Siobhan Morris later posted video of Ford’s speech to X. You can watch it and decide for yourself if you think he was speaking in jest.

And you can read more about the fallout here.

In a scrum following the campaign’s first debate, Crombie said the party will not be dumping its candidate in the hotly contested riding of Thunder Bay—Superior North, Brian Hamilton.

Just hours earlier, the PCs circulated two news releases highlighting 2014 social media posts in which Hamilton seemed to have trivialized allegations of sexual misconduct against former CBC host Jian Ghomeshi and American comedian Bill Cosby.

Crombie said the posts were “a long time ago” and that Hamilton apologized, and that he shares her passion for hiring more family doctors and defeating Ford. Hamilton is currently a city councillor in Thunder Bay.

Thunder Bay—Superior North was held by the NDP in the last legislature, but was a Liberal riding for more than 20 years before that. It was a close three-way race between the NDP, PCs and Liberals in 2022.

Who needs party platforms and debates, anyway?

This week Crombie had her own proposal to help voters pick their next premier: a feat of strength.

During an off-the-cuff riff on her party raising enough money to air two ads during the Super Bowl, Crombie took an unexpected turn and… dared Ford to a, wait for it… push-up contest.

“I’m happy to challenge him anytime, on his turf or mine. My turf’s the gym, so if he … wants to come at me and we’ll have a competition and we’ll have a competition in the gym. Maybe we’ll do push ups, what do you think?” she asked a room of bemused reporters.

Laura Stone, a journalist with the Globe and Mail, tried to ask Ford about Crombie’s challenge at the end of a news conference but her question was drowned out by the PC campaign song blaring over loud speakers.

The major party leaders met in North Bay on Friday to debate northern issues. 

You can read our live coverage of the contest here. And here are a few of the most notable exchanges:

Ontario’s 4 major parties clash over affordability

Things got tense on the debate stage as the leaders clashed over how they’d make life more affordable for Ontarians.

Should the province be responsible for social housing? Here’s what the major party leaders say

During a northern issues debate in North Bay, Ont., the party leaders were asked if the Queen’s Park should handle social housing.

How Ontario’s major party leaders would respond to the province’s mental health and addiction crisis

During a northern issues debate in North Bay, Ont., the major party leaders were asked how they would repond to Ontario’s mental health and addiction crisis.

The next debate is on Monday evening. Here’s all the ways you can tune in on CBC.

Three of the four major party leaders sat down with Metro Morning for one-on-one interviews this week. Check them out if you want to learn more about what the leaders are pitching to voters. 

An invitation was also sent to Ford and the PC campaign, but they have not responded. 

Rent control, fourplexes: NDP’s Stiles defends her campaign promises

Speaking on Metro Morning, NDP Leader Marit Stiles underscored her key platform issues, while slamming PC Leader Doug Ford for his Ontario Place plans and the “disarray” of the province’s health-care system.

Crombie criticizes PC’s spending, pledges to tackle Ontario’s affordability crisis

Speaking on Metro Morning, Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie laid out what election issues are at the forefront of her mind ahead of the Feb. 27 vote, including providing family doctors to Ontarians without one and tackling the province’s affordability crisis.

Schreiner ‘prepared to win’ Ontario election

Speaking on Metro Morning, Green Leader Mike Schreiner touted his plan to prioritize rural communities, while working to address Ontarian’s “real affordability concerns.”

Learn more about each party’s pitch

You asked, and now it’s here.

CBC News launched our election platform tracker this week. 

The Greens are the only party that has released a fully costed list of promises so far, so we had to work mainly with piecemeal announcements for now.

But the tracker will be updated as the campaign rolls on.

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