Doug Ford supporters at the Toronto Congress Centre on on Feb 27, 2025.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford has won a third straight majority government after a campaign in which he positioned himself as the best leader to take on U.S. President Donald Trump and push back on the American threat of tariffs.
The New Democrats maintained their status as the Official Opposition party with 27 seats, while the Liberals regained official party status. As of midnight, the Progressive Conservatives had 43 per cent of the popular vote, with the Liberals at 30 per cent and the New Democrats at 19 per cent.
Here are some takeaways.
Doug Ford’s snap election gamble pays off
Mr. Ford secured a historic third majority government, with election night results showing the PCs expanding their caucus to 80 seats, from 79. Throughout the campaign, Mr. Ford repeatedly said he needed a strong mandate from Ontarians to face Mr. Trump’s tariff threats.
Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives won a third straight majority government, propelled by his visible crusade against economic uncertainty emanating from the U.S. Ford says he will work with governments at every level and of every political stripe to fight the threatened tariffs and shore up Ontario's economy.
The Canadian Press
Throughout the campaign, the NDP and Liberals tried to draw attention to significant problems in the Ontario health care system, and claimed Mr. Ford had called the snap election because he was trying to get ahead of the RCMP investigation into his government’s aborted decision to open up the protected Greenbelt lands for development. He was also accused of inappropriately blurring the lines between campaigning party leader and Premier, including with trips to Washington that were dismissed by his opponents as photo ops.
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Opinion: Doug Ford’s Ontario election win puts him in a class of his own
NDP wins the battle for second
With the Conservatives leading in the polls throughout the campaign, political observers were focused on who would come in second. Marit Stiles’s New Democrats secured their status as the Official Opposition party with 27 seats. Leading up to election day, polls showed the Liberals in second place. The NDP has been the Official Opposition since 2018, initially under Andrea Horwath, who resigned after the 2022 election. Ms. Stiles was first elected in the Toronto riding of Davenport in 2018.
Doug Ford's Progressive Conservatives won a third straight majority government in a snap election. Other leaders struck an optimistic tone in their concession speeches, with NDP Leader Marit Stiles staying on as Opposition leader, Liberals regaining official party status in the legislature and Greens holding onto their two seats.
The Canadian Press
Bonnie Crombie loses race, but Liberals pick up seats
The Liberals needed 12 seats to regain official party status. Early results show they won 14. The party lost the designation in 2018 when Mr. Ford defeated then-premier Kathleen Wynne and has been in third-party status ever since. Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie lost her own race in the riding of Mississauga East-Cooksville to Progressive Conservative Silvia Gualtieri by more than 1,000 votes. But in an election-night speech, Ms. Crombie said she was staying on as a leader. “People counted us out. They said the Ontario Liberal Party was dead. Tonight, you proved them wrong,” said Ms. Crombie. Ms. Gualtieri is the mother-in-law of Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown, who was formerly Ontario PC leader. Mississauga ridings tend to flip between the PCs and Liberals.
Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie walks on stage at her campaign headquarters to address her supporters during the Ontario election in Mississauga.Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press
Flipped seats
The Liberals flipped PC seats in Ajax, Etobicoke-Lakeshore and Nepean, which was held for 26 years by the Progressive Conservatives. The PCs gained Hamilton Mountain from the NDP, part of a Tory push to win the support of blue-collar workers and tradespeople. The PCs also flipped Algoma-Manitoulin from the NDP. Meanwhile, the Liberals won Toronto-St. Paul’s, which was held by the NDP, and the NDP held on to Windsor West, which the Tories had been fighting to win.
Low voter turnout
Voter turnout was about 45 per cent as of midnight Thursday, according to Elections Ontario, which is about the same as the historic low turnout in the 2022 election. Political observers expected low numbers, citing the snowy weather and the early election call.
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly said the Liberals flipped Kanata-Carleton from the PCs, and incorrectly attributed voter turnout statistics to Elections Canada. This version has been corrected.