Most of Ontario is facing a conundrum regarding who to vote for in the upcoming election. Although most polls indicate that the Progressive Conservative party has a slight lead over the Liberals, this is not an accurate display of the shape of politics in Ontario. This is because now more than ever, people are uncertain who to give their vote to.
The problem lies in the idea that Ontario voters have become tired of the 15 years of Liberal governance. A new poll indicates that 81 per cent of Ontarians want to see a new government in charge, but the alternatives do not seem to be that promising.
PC Leader Doug Ford speaks to a crowd of supporters in Sudbury in May, 2018. (Photo from Doug Ford)
Doug Ford, the leader of the PC party, is a business politician. His campaign platform demonstrates his views against carbon taxes and the new Ontario sex education curriculum. His campaign also proposes a freeze of the minimum wage at $14 an hour and provincial and corporate tax cuts. His views are similar to those that we have seen echoed across the border in the United States, with promises to get back more than 300,000 manufacturing jobs, and to open Ontario up for business. This platform shows Ford’s intent to turn the province in a different direction.
NDP Leader Andrea Horwath at the NDP 2018 campaign kickoff (Photo by Joey Coleman)
The only way for the NDP leader, Andrea Horwath to win is through uniting the left and flipping the Liberals who have lost trust for their party. The NDP’s nearly absent track record in provincial politics may also come in handy for Horwath. Many people want to see a fresh face in Ontario politics, especially one that does not carry as much political baggage as the Liberal party’s leader Kathleen Wynne.
Horwath claims that the main difference between the Liberals and the NDP is that “we believe in things before and after elections.” This is in reference to the several instances when the Liberal party has deprived public spending when in office, then funneled this money back in during election cycles.
Horwath also has a chance to use her campaign to represent an optimistic and positive political movement in Ontario. Horwath has to position her campaign as one that addresses the future of Ontario, with a shift towards decarbonization, less privatization and more equal access to social services, healthcare and post-secondary education. This is what Ontario needs now more than ever.
We need an optimistic left party.
Ontarians should not fall into the business politics trap that is Doug Ford’s campaign. The last thing Ontario needs is more privatization and less public spending. Especially in considering the disappearing middle class and the increasing two-to-three income households, Ontarians need more support from their government.
Although each political platform is far from perfect, it is time for the NDP to no longer be the provincial laggard and take the reins to draw in Ontarians for a better future. With Ontarians seeing what is going on south of the border with the Trump administration, it is a crucial time to reintroduce optimism to politics.
That is best embodied by the NDP.
By Nour Elassiuty
Please note that opinions expressed are the author’s own. They do not necessarily reflect the views and values of The Blank Page.
