TORONTO – The vote in Ontario is approaching and the atmosphere is “heating up”: the Progressive Conservatives remain the favourites, but approval for their leader, Doug Ford, continues to drop, and the same is happening for the Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie, while both Marit Stiles of the NDP and Mike Schreiner of the Greens are rising. 

This is what emerges from a new survey carried out by Nanos Research for CTV, conducted on 920 adults and published today (you can download/read here the whole report).

According to the data, the Progressive Conservatives have the support of 43.8 per cent of decided voters across Ontario, followed by the Liberals at 28.8 per cent, the NDP at 19.6 per cent and the Greens at 5.1 per cent. Ford’s party therefore rises from the last poll (42.6%), while the Liberals fall by 1.7%, the NDP rises by 1.2% and the Greens fall by 1.1%. But many things change when it comes to “preferred premier”: Ford is now at 37.8%, down from 38.6% in the previous survey and 41.4% in the one before; Crombie in turn recorded a decline, now at 24.1%, compared to 25.9% in the last survey, while Stiles now gains support at 17% and Schreiner does the same, reaching 8.1%.

The electoral campaign continues. Doug Ford, today in Sault Ste. Marie, announced investments of 500 million dollars “to build a made-in-Ontario critical mineral supply chain. Our critical minerals will be Ontario mined and processed by Ontario workers” said Ford, once again in an anti-US tone. “we need to build a resilient economy that’s self-sufficient. We need to build an economy that protects Ontario” from “the threats of Donald Trump’s tariffs” said the outgoing premier. Bonnie Crombie in the weekend presented the Ontario Liberals’ plans for education, announcing the construction of ninety new schools over the next four years, doubling annual funding to fix structural problems in existing schools, hiring more mental health personal for students, and speeding up the training of new teachers to reduce staffing shortages. NDP Leader Marit Stiles, today in Ottawa, he insisted on his strong points: more doctors, more affordable housing, the fight against the cost of living and the defense of employment. Green leader Mike Schreiner continued his campaign in defense of rural communities: “Doug Ford has failed on healthcare, especially in rural communities. Greens will ensure you can access care in your community, where and when you need it”.

Meanwhile, early voting closed on Saturday evening: the cold did not prevent several Ontarians from voting over the weekend and taking advantage of advanced voting, even though there were only a few days available: just three. As Laura Sylvis, spokesperson for Elections Ontario, explained to CityNews (here) that  this is due to the fact that “under the Election Act, fixed-date elections are required to have 10 advance polling days, while non-fixed-date elections are required to have three” (as in this case: it is in fact an election in advance of the set date).

Election Day is coming: Thursday 27 February, from 9am to 9pm.

Photo: Elections Ontario