On The Ledge

In this episode of On the Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast:How, if at all, will the weather affect voter turnout, which is expected to be low?How quickly does Doug Ford need to get back to the business of governing, (assuming the polling trend doesn't turn upside down).Some seat models suggest the Liberals and NDP would win 17 seats each based on the latest polls? They'd both have official party status. Which party would be the Official Opposition? (HINT: Doug Ford could play a role in deciding).We're joined by former Toronto Mayor John Tory, Tim Hudak - Partner at Counsel Public Affairs and Keith Leslie, Queen's Park commentator at  @CHCHNews11  in Hamilton.

John Wright, Lindsay Broadhead, Anne Marie Aikins and Bob Reid join the pod to do three things.Taking time to remember radio journalism legend Tayler Parnaby What's going on in Olivia Chow's office (if not her head?)How will Doug Ford manage what's shaping up to be a landslide majority?

In this episode of On the Ledge - your DAILY Ontario election podcast, we're joined by Pedro Barata, President and CEO at Habitat for Humanity, Neil Hetherington, CEO at Daily Bread Food Bank and Gerard Kennedy, CEO at Enterprising for Good.(Neil's golden lab Charley also offers an opinion:)And we talk about the ramifications of the Ontario government's failure to get its arms around the growing housing crisis and the effects the US-Canada Trade war will have on the sector.

In this episode of On the Ledge - your DAILY Ontario election podcast, Doug Ford releases his party's "costed" platform. It includes $40b in new spending, including a $5b Protect Ontario Account to fend off the effects of the Trump tariffs.But there's no indication where that money will come from.Meanwhile, Bonnie Crombie's campaign steps on a bilingual rake during a stop in the Ottawa area.The polls continue to suggest the Liberals are making gains at the expense of PCs and NDP. Could it have anything to do with an $800k ad spend on Meta platforms over the past 30 days?Today we're joined by former PC Ontario Leader Tim Hudak and CHCH TV Queen's Park commentator Keit Leslie.

We wrap the final full week on the campaign with former Toronto Mayor John Tory, former Ontario Education Minister Gerard Kennedy, the Queen of Corp Comms Lindsay Broadhead and our resident/founding pollster are around the table for out 300th episode of On the Ledge!What does a hockey game have to do with the campaign on a day when Doug Ford's in Washington and the opposition parties release their costed platforms?

In this episode of On the Ledge - your DAILY Ontario election podcast, we're joined by Public Affairs Consultant Bob Richardson, CH Television commentator Keith Leslie, Counsel Public Affairs Partner Tim Hudak, former Toronto Mayor John Tory and our founding pollster John Wright.With less than a week of campaigning to go, the question is which opposition party will emerge as the Official Opposition.Two weeks ago, there was some question whether the Liberals would gain official party status. Modelling suggested they wouldn't get more the 12 seats necessary.A week ago, BOTH the Liberals and NDP were under water, suggesting Doug Ford's PCs could win a majority with none of the opposition parties having official status.This week, it appears the Liberals are on the upswing and the New Democrats are struggling.The outcome will depend on who gets the vote out. And that may be a challenge considering the winter conditions and an election day forecast calling for more snow.

In this episode of On the Ledge - your DAILY Ontario election podcast, we're joined by Monique Smith (Global Public Affairs), Lindsay Broadhead (Broadhead Communications) and Amanda Galbraith (Oyster Group).Question: How does a campaign keep volunteers and workers enthusiastic when it appears the Tories are going to run away with the election and there is still more than a week before election day?There are a number of polls suggesting the Liberals are improving at the expense of the NDP.Question: How much trouble are the Stiles' New Democrats facing in Toronto and HamiltonQuestion: Could the Liberals win official party status, maybe even Official Opposition but lose their leader? (The PCs are leading in every region of the province - particularly in the 905).And Doug Ford's media avoidance may be good political strategy but it's nonetheless disrespectful of local voters.

Only 9 more sleeps before Election Day in Ontario. In this episode of On the Ledge - your DAILY Ontario election campaign podcast, we're joined by Laura Babcock at Powergroup Communications, Public Affairs Consultant Bob Richardson, Former Deputy Mayor of Toronto Ana Bailao and Toronto Sun Columnist Brian Lilley.The crew says early assessments of the leaders' performances in the debate has shifted somewhat. The nearly immediate reviews post debate suggested Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie performed poorly. But most of the more memorable "morning after" clips from the debate tend to feature Crombie.So, maybe she did better than we thought! The biggest play on the campaign was Crombie's appeal to NDP voters to cast ballots for Liberals to stop Doug Ford's romp to a third majority government.

The second half our of On the Ledge DOUBLE HEADER included Deb Hutton from Newstalk 1010, Lindsay Broadhead - a member of our Now and Next C.A.S.T. (Comms and Strategy Team), Tim Hudak, Counsel Public Affairs, Keith Leslie, CH TV commentator and our resident pollster John Wright.Key takeaways:Doug Ford did what he had to do. He stayed out of trouble and won by "not losing"Bonnie Crombie came out hot...too hot?Marit Stiles and Mike Schreiner scored policy points but was it enough to move the needle?

It's the first show on a DOUBLE HEADER day for On the Ledge!Tim Hudak, from Counsel Public Affairs, Monique Smith at Global Public Affairs and Keith Leslie, Queen's Park Commentator at CH Television join DT to set the table for the Leaders' Debate set to go later this evening.