Don Martin: A basic Doug Ford takes a middle-of-the-road victory lap in Ontario election
There’s a cautionary lesson in Doug Ford’s victory for Canadian politicians generally, Conservatives specifically and leadership hopeful Pierre Poilievre in particular: Boring politics is back, coloured in many shades of grey.
To an electorate fed up with heavy-handed government interventions into their pandemic-lockdown lives and wincing at increasingly stark political polarizations about nothing, noisy drama, contrived confrontations and ideology-driven platforms are out.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford coasted to majority re-election victory Thursday night boasting only mediocrity in performance and a yawning monotony in promises. First-term excellence was not required. Doing OK was good enough.
He said little throughout the campaign, kept his face off the front page and crept around the province vowing only that he would ‘Get It Done’ without exactly articulating what ‘it’ was or how ‘it’ would get done.
He posted a weak platform built on promises like new or wider freeways, this in a time when gridlock-causing commuters are working from home while climate change was storming great swaths of southern Ontario into darkness.
But voters appeared eager to move beyond the memory of COVID doing a grim-reaper rampage through long-term care, the horrific toll of the opioid crisis, the underfunded struggle against mental illness and the falling-behind state of Ontario health care.
Their preference was simple enough: Deliver a semi-competent, job-protecting, C-plus grade of government and it’s good for a massive majority payday which put him far ahead of his 2018 results - even in usually-hostile Toronto.
Of course, Ford was blessed with a weakling opposition which rarely hit the bullseye on his wide-open forehead. Liberal rival Steven Del Duca was cerebral in policy but toxic on television and uninspiring in personality, so much so he lost his own seat and will be departing as leader shortly if he hasn’t already.
More charismatic NDP leader Andrea Horwath has lost a trio of Ontario election attempts and her fourth similar-sounding effort was clearly one bid too far. She too will quickly exit as leader.
For a why-rock-the-boat electorate, Ford became a risk-adverse safe and steady force of personality. He sounded sincere in feeling our pandemic pain. When hitting too hard on COVID-control, he admitted mistakes and reversed course in the face of public outcry. And he barge-poled away from media before and during the campaign, the better to avoid inserting any feet into his mouth.
Voters in Ontario were not screaming for Conservative policy comfort food like fiscal austerity, smaller bureaucracies, deficit elimination or tax cuts, so Ford delivered mushy political pablum and free motor vehicle registration.
Ford simply put his PC party label into middle ground practice: Not too progressive. Not too conservative.
It’s doubtful, if not laughable, to suggest that Doug Ford is on track to match the iconic status of Ontario’s Bill Davis, New Brunswick’s Frank McKenna or Alberta’s Peter Lougheed. He’s more like an Ontario answer to Alberta’s common-touch premier Ralph Klein.
Or, as a long-time Tory told me, Ford is former premier Mike Harris, minus the heavy ideology-baggage, who aims to deliver a Common Sense Evolution.
Still, there’s no denying the impressive victory he scored.
After a decade standing in baby brother Rob’s mayoralty shadow on Toronto city council and playing silly ideology games while learning to be premier, Ford has scored a stronger mandate to get whatever it is done his way.
You can bet Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s probable successor (read Chrystia Freeland) watched the Ford campaign closely as inspiration for her 2025 campaign, particularly with probable rival Pierre Poilievre as Conservative leader noisily rattling the cages of the status quo to shake-up the establishment order.
They can see a campaign where Poilievre is a rock-the-boat rebel without a cause, dividing his party and whipping up anger and resentment to advocate change nobody really wants. In other words, a steady, low-octane campaign could be the best Liberal pathway back to majority rule.
We’re getting way ahead of ourselves, but pan-banging federal Conservatives, believing the route to victory is a hard-right turn under contentious wild-child leadership, should pay close attention to victory by their Ontario cousins.
The voters in Ontario’s heartland, the political turf Conservatives desperately need to win federally, have decided they prefer to drive down the middle of the road in a kinder gentler basic Ford on cruise control.
That’s the bottom line…..
IN DEPTH
Trudeau, key election players to testify at foreign interference hearings. What you need to know
The public hearings portion of the federal inquiry into foreign interference in Canadian elections and democratic institutions are picking back up this week. Here's what you need to know.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Who is supporting, opposing new online harms bill?
Now that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's sweeping online harms legislation is before Parliament, allowing key stakeholders, major platforms, and Canadians with direct personal experience with abuse to dig in and see what's being proposed, reaction is streaming in. CTVNews.ca has rounded up reaction, and here's how Bill C-63 is going over.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
TREND LINE What Nanos' tracking tells us about Canadians' mood, party preference heading into 2024
Heading into a new year, Canadians aren't feeling overly optimistic about the direction the country is heading, with the number of voters indicating negative views about the federal government's performance at the highest in a decade, national tracking from Nanos Research shows.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
opinion Don Martin: Pierre Poilievre's road to apparent victory will soon start to get rougher
Pierre Poilievre and his Conservatives appear to be on cruise control to a rendezvous with the leader's prime ministerial ambition, but in his latest column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin questions whether the Conservative leader may be peaking too soon.
opinion Don Martin: The Trudeau lessons from Brian Mulroney's legacy start with walking away
Justin Trudeau should pay very close attention to the legacy treatment afforded former prime minister Brian Mulroney, who died on Thursday at age 84, writes columnist Don Martin.
opinion Don Martin: ArriveCan debacle may be even worse than we know from auditor's report
It's been 22 years since a former auditor general blasted the Chretien government after it 'broke just about every rule in the book' in handing out private sector contracts in the sponsorship scandal. In his column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin says the book has been broken anew with everything that went on behind the scenes of the 'dreaded' ArriveCan app.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
developing Bus plunges off a bridge in South Africa, killing 45 people. An 8-year-old child is only survivor
A bus carrying worshippers headed to an Easter festival plunged off a bridge on a mountain pass and burst into flames in South Africa on Thursday, killing at least 45 people, authorities said.
Calgary bridges remain closed due to ongoing police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Kinew, Poilievre meet at Manitoba legislature, discuss each other's priorities
Premier Wab Kinew and federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre met at the Manitoba legislature Thursday afternoon.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Local Spotlight
Conservation officers seize 9-foot python from Chilliwack home
B.C. conservation officers recently seized a nine-foot-long Burmese python from a home in Chilliwack.
N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
Ontario auto-insurance changes could leave some vulnerable, says expert
The Ontario government is introducing changes to auto-insurance, but some experts say the move is ill-advised.
Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
A tiny critter who could: Elusive Newfoundland Marten makes improbable comeback
Newfoundland’s unique version of the Pine Marten has grown out of its threatened designation.
Ontario man loses $12K to deepfake scam involving Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
A Toronto man is out $12,000 after falling victim to a deepfake cryptocurrency scam that appeared to involve Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Record-setting pop tab collection for Ontario boy
It started small with a little pop tab collection to simply raise some money for charity and help someone — but it didn’t take long for word to get out that 10-year-old Jace Weber from Mildmay, Ont. was quickly building up a large supply of aluminum pop tabs.
'I was just like, holy cow!': Saskatoon dumpster divers reclaim wasted valuables
There’s a group of people in Saskatoon that proudly call themselves dumpster divers, and they’re turning the city’s trash into treasure.
Ontario to balance budget ahead of 2026 election, citing delay due to 'economic uncertainty'
Ontario is facing a larger than anticipated deficit but the Doug Ford government still plans to balance its books before the next provincial election.