Ontario’s Liberal government is expected to cruise to an easy victory in the Oct. 10 provincial election, but the NDP is expected to make gains as a result of John Tory’s disastrous campaign.
Most election prediction sites are calling Oshawa for CUPE Ontario Division President Sid Ryan, while a few are also predicting gains for the NDP in Ottawa Centre and London-Fanshawe.
The Liberals and Tories are expected to exchange two seats each.
Ontario Conservative leader John Tory sank his own campaign by calling for public funding for religious private schools. Reaction from voters was fast, furious and overwhelmingly negative. Siphoning public money into private schools is a non-starter for most Ontarians.
Tory compounded his problems when he promised MPPs free vote on the issue. Pundits and voters alike saw this as a great way to be in support of a proposal without actually having to see it come to pass.
Tory’s pro-religious schools supporters felt betrayed, and everyone else had second thoughts about a leader — who built his campaign on denouncing McGuinty’s broken promises — breaking promises even before the polls opened.
There’s speculation out there that the Tory train wreck is making it easier for some to vote their consciences and “Get Orange” as CUPE Ontario had been urging voters since the election was called September 10.
The CUPE Ontario campaign, which featured a “Two sides of the same coin” tour bus was aimed at getting voters to for what they want, and not against what they feared.
But none of the election prediction sites have models to predict the outcome of the Mixed Member Proportional voting referendum which would change the flavour of Ontario politics.
CUPE Ontario has endorsed the MMP proposal and is urging its members to vote yes.