Ariel Tozman –
Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party won its third majority government in Ontario’s snap election on February 27th. Decidedly orange voters re-elected New Democratic candidates in Toronto Centre, Spadina–Fort York, and Toronto Danforth.
The NDP, led by Marit Stiles, maintains its status as the Official Opposition, winning 27 seats compared with the Conservatives’ 80. Bonnie Crombie’s Liberals advanced to party status with 14 seats, up from nine, while the Greens held their two seats.
Premier Ford called the election more than a year in advance of the set date, costing the province about $189 million. On X, Ford said he needs a “strong, stable, four-year mandate … to stand up and fight back” against U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff threats – largely a federal matter. Ford made protecting the province a focal point of his campaign; he is the first Ontario premier to win three successive majorities since the 1950s.
Torontonians re-elected Stiles in Davenport and incumbent Jessica Bell in University-Rosedale, affirming the party’s hold over the city’s core.
In Toronto-Centre, Kristyn Wong-Tam won 44.5 percent of the vote. The riding encompasses Old Town, Cabbagetown, Moss Park, Regent Park, Distillery District, Church-Wellesley Village, St. James Town and Toronto Metropolitan University.
Runner-up Holly Rasky, the Liberal candidate, finished with 36.2 percent. Conservative Ruth Farkas won 14.5 percent and Green Andrew Massey got 2.7 percent.
Before the election, some political and community actors made a concerted effort to prevent an NDP-Liberal vote split that would favour Ford’s party. SmartVoting.ca, a digital tool created by Polaris Media, posted polling data to help Ontarians vote strategically.
Natasha Doyle-Merrick, the NDP candidate in Eglinton-Lawrence, stepped down in favour of Liberal Vince Gasparro, who lost to Conservative Michelle Cooper by less than 200 votes. “I recognize the race in Eglinton–Lawrence is a clear two-party contest between Liberals and Conservatives,” she said in a statement posted to social media.
Affordable housing and public transit were key issues in the Downtown East. Across Ontario, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives reported that public services are underfunded and that the province has the lowest levels of well-being in Canada.
Wong-Tam’s campaign website called for improvements to rent control and to fix the Landlord Tenant Board. A former Toronto city councillor, Wong-Tam has been Toronto Centre’s MPP since 2022.
In Spadina-Fort York, MPP Chris Glover promised to build more affordable homes, including non-profit condos, co-ops for all income levels, and Toronto Commmunity Housing Corporation (TCHC) housing. In Toronto Danforth, winner Peter Tabuns also promoted building affordable housing and boosting public transit funding.
Ford pledged to invest billions of dollars in roads, transit and highways to ease traffic congestion and fight gridlock – including a tunnel more than 50 kilometres long under Highway 401.
His proposed Highway 413 connecting the regions of York, Peel and Halton, will cost more than $4 billion. According to Environmental Defence, a Canadian environmental advocacy organization, the project would pave over 400 acres of the Greenbelt and 2000 acres of prime farmland.
“While Ontario desperately needs more housing, sprawl is the most expensive and inefficient way to build homes,” Environmental Defence argued.
