TORONTO — Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie is pushing forward with a new election campaign strategy of trying to appeal to NDP voters, suggesting they should unite behind her as the way to topple the Progressive Conservatives.
Crombie is pitching herself as the strongest alternative to PC Leader Doug Ford, though polls suggest the Tories have a sizable lead over both the Liberals and NDP.
NDP Leader Marit Stiles says the Liberals’ goal is just to try to get official party status.
Political parties require at least 12 seats in the legislature to get party status, which gives them more resources and more opportunities to ask questions and participate in debates, and at dissolution the Liberals held nine.
Ford had been scheduled to fly to Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., for an announcement, but the party says delays at Pearson International Airport prevented him from leaving Toronto.
There is no word on whether he will take questions today from reporters in Toronto instead.
Ford last took questions in Washington, D.C., when he and other Canadian premiers travelled there to push back against U.S. tariffs, but the last time he took questions in Ontario during the snap provincial election campaign he called was one week ago Monday.
The election is scheduled for Feb. 27.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2025.
Allison Jones, The Canadian Press
