Despite being the overwhelming favourite to win the provincial election, a majority of Ontario voters say that Premier Doug Ford called voters to the ballet to serve his own interests and that an election is unnecessary.
In a new poll from Angus Reid, 78% of Ontarians agreed with the statement “Doug Ford is calling this election for his own best interests,” with only 13% of voters disagreeing.
The belief that Ford called a self-serving election is held across party lines, as over 90% of Liberal, NDP, and Green party voters said the election was only called for the sake of the Progressive Conservatives. Even 58% of Ontarians intending to vote PC agreed with the statement.
Not only do voters think that the election was called to serve the interests of the premier, but a majority also say that the election is unnecessary.
A total of 68% of Ontarians say the election is unnecessary, with 84% of Ontario Liberals and Greens and 83% of NDP supporters agreeing with the sentiment. A plurality, 48%, of PC supporters also agree that the election is unnecessary, while 38% disagree.
Ford opponents have hammered him for calling an early election during a potential trade conflict with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie slammed Ford for calling an election and is attempting to shift the provincial conversation away from the issue of American tariffs and towards healthcare.
“Doug Ford doesn’t want to have an election about healthcare because he doesn’t want to answer for his failures,” said Crombie.
NDP leader Marit Stiles claims that Ford is calling the election to run away from his government’s record.
“While the people of Ontario are anxious about the grave threat of tariffs, Doug Ford is pursuing his own political gain. People need a Premier who will fight like hell for every single job that’s at risk, not run to the polls over a year early,” said Stiles.
The Angus Reid poll also found that 40% of Ontario voters think that a PC government would be the worst for their overall quality of living while 17% say the Liberals would be the worst, 16% say the NDP would be the worst, and 10% for the Greens.
On the other hand, only 31% of voters say the PCs would be the best for their overall quality of living while 25% say the NDP would be the best, 20% say the Liberal would be the best, and 19% remain uncertain.
Earlier in the week, Angus Reid polled Ford’s personal popularity, finding that the premier only holds a 32% personal approval rating, making him the most unpopular premier in the country.
Despite the negative perception of Ford and the prospects of his party returning to power, the PCs are projected to win the election in a landslide.
According to 338Canada, the Ontario PCs are on track to win a supermajority in the Legislative Assembly. Ford’s PCs are projected to win 46% of the popular vote, up from the 40.8% they won in 2022 and 101 seats in the legislature of 124, up from 83 seats.
The NDP is slated to win 19% of the vote and 12 seats, while the Liberals are projected to win 26% of the vote and eight seats.
If the PCs win 101 seats in the legislature, Ford’s party would win the most seats in Ontario’s electoral history and the greatest proportion of seats in the legislature since Premier Leslie Frost’s 1955 election victory in which he won 83 of the 98 seats.
