What's at stake for Ontario in today's federal election

CBC News

· Posted: Apr 28, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 infinitesimal ago

In each national predetermination but 1 implicit the past 50 years, the enactment taking the astir seats successful Ontario has besides formed government. Tonight Canadians volition larn whether that inclination continues.

There are 122 seats up for grabs successful Ontario, much than one-third of each ridings successful Canada. In the 2021 election, the state elected 78 Liberals, 37 Conservatives, 5 New Democrats and 1 Green. Ontario has since gained an extra seat in the redistribution of electoral boundaries. 

Polls are unfastened Monday from 9:30 a.m. ET to 9:30 p.m. ET crossed the state (including successful the northwestern country of Ontario that's successful the Central clip zone.) 

The five-week run often saw the large enactment leaders successful Ontario, peculiarly the 905 and immoderate battleground ridings successful southwestern and bluish Ontario.

Liberal Leader Mark Carney and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre person their ain names connected the ballot successful 2 neighbouring Ontario ridings, the Ottawa-area seats of Nepean and Carleton respectively.

While NDP person Jagmeet Singh is moving successful a riding successful Burnaby, B.C., helium grew up successful Windsor and served successful the Ontario Legislature arsenic a New Democrat MPP representing Brampton. 

The issues that person dominated the run nationally — including the outgo of living, the system and U.S. President Donald Trump's economical and governmental threats against Canada — besides resonated with voters successful Ontario. 

The national run kicked disconnected little than a period aft the provincial predetermination successful which Premier Doug Ford led his Progressive Conservatives to their 3rd consecutive majority.

Ford's run focused astir exclusively connected Trump and tariffs, with the PC person pitching himself arsenic the champion person to support Ontario against the threats. 

As Liberal person successful the nationalist campaign, Carney mimicked overmuch of Ford's strategy, adjacent holding identical-looking run events successful Windsor, with the Ambassador Bridge to the U.S. as a backdrop.

While Ford has professed that helium volition enactment with whoever forms government, determination has been acold greater hostility betwixt his squad and the Conservative person than with the Liberal leader. 

Ford's run manager Kory Teneycke, who antecedently advised erstwhile premier curate Stephen Harper, openly criticized the Poilievre run for not pivoting its connection to Trump and tariffs.

Ford backed Teneycke, telling reporters connected April 14, "if Kory was moving that campaign, I don't deliberation Mr. Poilievre would beryllium successful the presumption he's successful close now." 

The CBC Poll Tracker suggests the Liberals were polling up of the Conservatives successful Ontario passim the campaign, though the spread narrowed in the last week. 

While Ford did not publically endorse immoderate person successful the campaign, helium met Carney for meal successful aboriginal March, just a fewer days aft his win, at the Liberal party's enactment convention.

Ford told reporters that a mid-March telephone telephone with Poilievre was the archetypal clip he'd ever spoken with the Conservative leader. Poilievre won the party's enactment successful September 2022.

Poilievre held respective ample rallies successful Ontario during the campaign, including events successful Stoney Creek, Brampton and Windsor, which drew large crowds. He released his party's costed level successful Vaughan. 

He chose the fast-growing GTA assemblage of Milton arsenic the tract to marque a key platform announcement connected housing. 

For the New Democrats, Singh was successful Ontario connected six of the archetypal 7 days of the campaign. He returned to the state respective times, including for the release of a level for bluish Ontario, a portion wherever the enactment won 2 seats successful the 2021 election. 

In the last days of the campaign, Singh did a plaything done confederate Ontario that included stops successful Hamilton, London and Windsor, 3 cities wherever NDP incumbents are seeking re-election.

Throughout the campaign, CBC journalists asked voters crossed Canada what matters to them successful the election.

We heard from voters successful a burger associated successful Oshawa, astatine the celebrated St. Jacobs farmers' marketplace successful Waterloo region, connected the field of Queen's University successful Kingston, at a motortruck halt disconnected the 401 successful eastbound Ontario and astatine a late-season Ottawa Senators game. 

Elsewhere successful Ontario, voters weighed successful with their thoughts successful specified places arsenic Windsor, Chatham-Kent-Leamington, London,  Mississauga and Manitoulin Island.

Voters successful the Ontario ridings with immoderate of the lowest turnouts past predetermination (King—Vaughan and Markham—Unionville) shared their concerns, arsenic did voters successful a riding with 1 of the highest turnouts (Niagara West).  

Two of CBC's flagship programs went connected the roadworthy to perceive from voters and made stops successful Ontario: Adrienne Arsenault sat down with radical successful Brampton for The National, portion Matt Galloway chatted with voters from crossed the 905 for The Current.