There have been close elections in Canada that have burned the midnight oil. This wasn’t the case in Ontario, where the candle wick barely required a lit match.
As widely expected, Premier Doug Ford and the Progressive Conservatives romped to victory on Thursday night.
This impressive result has sealed Ford’s political legacy. If he stays in power for four years, he would become only the fourth Ontario premier after Oliver Mowat, Leslie Frost and Bill Davis to have held power for over a decade. (Two premiers, John Robarts and Dalton McGuinty, stepped down before the 10-year mark. One premier, James Whitney, died in office with less than five months left before achieving this distinction.)
How long does Ford plan to stay in the Pink Palace? That’s easy — forever!
The premier made this comment during a campaign stop on Tuesday. “I want to be premier forever,” he told reporters in Oldcastle, Ont. Moreover, his plan is to “beat out Hazel McCallion for the number of years.” He always had a soft spot for the former mayor of Mississauga, a Liberal with conservative sensibilities who supported him in 2018.
Putting aside the obvious fact that nothing lasts forever, this could be a Herculean task. McCallion was in the mayor’s chair for 36 years (Dec. 1, 1978 to Nov. 30, 2014), and was nearly unbeatable during the height of her political career. It would also be a struggle for Ford to beat out Mowat, who was Premier for almost 24 years (Oct. 25, 1872 to July 12, 1896).
Meanwhile, does Ford really want to pigeonhole himself? He’s focused on governing Ontario, but there’s always been speculation that he could go to Ottawa one day. No premier who has ever won a provincial election has gone on to become prime minister. (Charles Tupper and John Thompson served in both capacities, but each one was appointed premier of Nova Scotia.) Ford also said in 2018 that he wasn’t “gunning” for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “I’m zoned in on this province, nothing else,” he told the media. “Not federally, nothing but fixing the financial mess that we inherited.”
Could his previously-held stance change now that the mediocre, ineffective Trudeau is on the way out? Probably not. He’s not going to show his hand right now — if there’s anything to show, that is. Pierre Poilievre is also firmly ensconced as federal Conservative leader and could become Prime Minister in spite of tightening polls. It’s always possible that Ford could choose to run after his third term has concluded, win a federal seat in Etobicoke and become a senior-level cabinet minister in a Conservative government. Some would view this as a demotion of sorts, but not everyone would be in that camp.
Let’s take Ford at his word for the sake of argument. What does he need to do to become a “forever premier?”
Ford needs to ensure that Ontario remains economically viable and open for business. The role and size of government needs to be as small and non-intrusive as possible. Personal and corporate taxes must be kept low. Tax incentives for domestic and international businesses should be top of mind. Thousands of new jobs also need to be created in every potential industry: blue-collar construction jobs, auto industry, tool and die makers, forestry, information technology, mining and minerals, electric vehicles — and more.
Ford needs to maintain high quality social services, too. More doctors and nurses need to be educated, hired and accessible for adults in children living in the urban, rural and northern communities. Education must remain a top priority, with heavy emphasis on teaching the fundamentals and computer technology as well as making sure that all teachers follow the provincial curriculum and stop politicizing their classrooms. The Premier also needs to focus on social housing programs, food supply, poverty and other areas that haven’t necessarily fit perfectly within Conservatism throughout history, but do fit within the compassionate conservative model that has helped define this ideological and political movement.
Ford also needs to continue to utilize his three strengths as a person and politician: conservatism, populism and retail politics. These are the main components of Ford Nation, his guiding philosophy, and they’ve served him well for decades. That’s why he’s been able to build relationships with the private sector and public sector, stand up for small business owners, achieve more union endorsements than any other Conservative politician in Canada in recent memory, remain a true champion of the little guy and help return power to the people. This would be a difficult balancing act for most politicians of the left and right, yet he’s mastered it brilliantly.
As well, Ford needs to protect Ontario from the threat of U.S. President Donald Trump’s 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian products. This was the main reason the Premier called this snap election. Almost half of his $40 billion party platform contained campaign promises devoted to dealing with tariffs, including a Protect Ontario Account to provide financial support programs for industries and workers, Whenever Trump implements his tariff threat, Ontario will be ready.
If Doug Ford follows these ideas (and others), he may very well become a “forever premier.” I’ll be watching with interest, as always.
National Post