Ontario Election 2014

Thursday June 12, 2014 – Election day in Ontario

 

Election Draft CartoonThursday June 12, 2014

Election day in Ontario – LIBERAL MAJORITY

For SaleDespite being hounded on both sides by rivals who harped on Liberal government scandals during the longer-than-normal campaign, Liberal Leader Kathleen Wynne has steered her party to a majority and a commanding electoral victory, based largely on major gains in the Toronto area, while PC Leader Tim Hudak declared he is resigning.

With all ridings reporting, Liberals were elected or leading in 58 constituencies to 27 for the Progressive Conservatives and 22 for the NDP.

The strong Liberal showing had its roots in the Greater Toronto Area, where eight seats are changing hands — seven of those going to the Liberals. Overall, the results mean the Liberals will be even more concentrated in the GTA.

The Liberals also picked up seats from the Tories in the Kitchener-Waterloo area, Barrie andNorthumberland, while they only lost two: Sudbury and Windsor West.  

The outcome was also slightly rosier for the NDP under Leader AndreaHorwath, who was the first of the major party leaders to be declared elected in their home riding tonight. The NDP vote share was at 24.1 per cent, up 1.4 points from the 2011 campaign. (Source: CBC News)

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Added at 9pm on election night…

Because the polls close at 9pm it’s always a major race for newspapers to report the results and get great coverage in an extremely short span of time. Consider that the presses start running at midnight giving reporters, columnists, copy editors, photographers, and of course, editorial cartoonists a very small window of time to the news out. A great deal of planning goes into this evening, and it often entails late nights, frenzied phone calls, and many curve balls. Polls have played an important part to media as they use them as a guide to determine how this night will turn out.

But not this night.

The polls are showing us that the gaps between all the 3 main parties are incredibly close. So close, that it is very difficult to figure out how the popular vote will translate into a seat count. Well we’ll know soon enough.

Never before have I found myself drawing 5 different cartoons for one election.

The most generic one is one that illustrates the status quo return to Liberal government.

Election Draft Cartoon

The next likely one is a PC minority.

Election Draft Cartoon

The chances of the NDP winning a minority is slim in my mind.

Election Draft Cartoon

Even unlikelier is the chance I think we’ll see a majority government of any party. But here’s the one I drew in case the PC’s win:

Election Draft Cartoon

Here’s my favourite cartoon. The Liberal Majority cartoon which I’m guessing will be the least likely scenario. Perhaps it’s wishful thinking.

Election Draft Cartoon

What I didn’t draw is a cartoon in the event Andrea Horwath is crowned Ontario’s new Premier tonight. That just can’t happen on election night. Unfortunately, crazy things do happen on election night. Let’s see what happens.

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TWO DECADES of DRAWING ONTARIO ELECTIONS

LETTERS to the EDITOR

Wynne is no Maleficent

 Your editorial cartoon depicting Kathleen Wynne as Maleficent was irresponsible and unfair, especially given the tone of the editorial which appeared beneath it. Wynne’s success was due in part to her accessibility, openness and likeability. If there was a hint of the potentially nasty in this campaign it came from Tim Hudak and co., who would have pit some among us against others. They lost and rightfully so.

 Paul T. Murphy, Grimsby, Jun 17, 2014 (Source)

‘Malwynnecent’ cartoon right on point

With respect to the letter on June 16regarding the “Malwynnecent” cartoon in the June 13 Spec, I found the cartoon hilarious, provocative, clever, and right on point. Isn’t that what an editorial cartoon is supposed to be? Further, the letter writer clearly didn’t see the movie or he would have understood that Maleficent was ultimately a good fairy who had been betrayed, and ultimately protected and nurtured Princess Aurora. Hardly an attack on the premier.

 Howard Eisenberg, Hamilton, Jun 18, 2014 (Source)

SOCIAL MEDIA

This cartoon was posted to National Newswatch.


 

Post by Dalton McGuinty: Ontario, up yours!

Wednesday June 11, 2014

Wednesday June 11, 2014By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday June 11, 2014

Don’t like ballot choice? ‘None of the Above’ an option for Ontario voters

Ontario voters fed up with the offerings of the mainstream political parties may feel sorely tempted to vote for none of the above come election day — and one party is well placed to capitalize on the sentiment.

Saturday, June 7, 2014Registered for the June 12th election is the None of the Above Party of Ontario — or NOTA — whose main plank is to press for elected politicians not bound by party control along with recall and term limits.

“Almost nobody knows we even exist and as soon as people do, they’re sending emails for lawn signs,” said leader Greg Vezina, a founding candidate for the federal Green party in 1983.

“I’ve only got candidates in eight ridings but I’ve got requests for lawn signs from Thunder Bay to Ottawa.”

Half of voters don’t bother to cast ballots while the other half want something different, said Vezina, who is running west of Toronto.

If voters find him NOTA good choice, they do have plenty of other options among the 20 registered parties.

They include Canadians Choice, Family Coalition and the Ontario Moderate party, along with John Turmel’s Pauper Party of Ontario.

For Turmel, who is in the Guinness World Book of Records for running and losing in more elections than anyone else, this will be the 80th election in which he’s been a candidate.

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“This is my third hat trick,” Turmel said proudly.

“Back in ’80 and ’82, I managed to pull off running in federal, municipal and provincial elections simultaneously.”

If elected premier, Turmel said, his first act would be to decommission nuclear power stations, which he calls the “biggest threat to all our lives.”

Besides adding some spice or even frivolity to the serious business of democracy, fringe parties, which collectively picked up about 54,000 votes in 2011, often press issues the main parties aren’t discussing.

For example, the Equal Parenting Party’s two candidates are adamant changes are needed to reform family law, which they say tends to favour mothers over fathers.

“If you want to divorce and you have children, it will be a 50-50 deal as far as time spent with, and money spent on children goes,” the party says on its website.

“This forces a mother to bargain and gives a father something to bargain with.”

Another party fishing for votes is the Vegan Environmental Party, which bills itself as “the voice for animal rights” with a platform focused on animals, the environment and social justice. (Source: CTV News)

 

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Tuesday, June 10, 2014Wynne says Liberal division on LRT makes it important to hear from Hamilton

With some Hamilton Liberal candidates dissenting on the idea of a light rail transit (LRT) line for the city, Premier Kathleen Wynne says it makes it more important for the province to hear from the city on its transportation priorities.

Monday, April 21, 2014“As these decisions are made, the provincial government must partner with municipal government and make sure the priorities of communities are heard and that the investments are made in the best way possible,” she said Saturday morning during a campaign stop in Waterdown.

“I know that there has been a lot of conversation about the LRT.”

Wynne’s campaign bus paid a visit to the Waterdown Farmer’s Market and then Liberal candidate Ted McMeekin’s campaign office in a mall in Waterdown. McMeekin, who has been in the legislature since 2000, is seeking re-election in Ancaster-Dundas-Flamborough-Westdale and faces a tough fight from Progressive Conservative candidate Donna Skelly.

In the afternoon, she visited the Hamilton Mountain campaign office of Liberal candidate Javid Mirza. About 100 people, including other candidates, attended what was billed as the ‘Rally in the Alley’ to hear the pep talk from Wynne. They believe Mirza could take Hamilton Mountain from New Democrat Monique Taylor.

“It’s a very tight election,” the premier told the gathering. “We’ve got to make sure we connect with everybody.”

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City council is on record supporting an east-west LRT – from McMaster University to Eastgate Square – providing the $800-million cost is covered by the province. LRT for Hamilton is suggested in Phase 2 of Metrolinx’s The Big Move, but there is no timeframe. Meanwhile, Hamilton East-Stoney Creek Liberal candidate Ivan Luksic and Hamilton Mountain Liberal candidate Javid Mirza don’t support LRT and say citizens tell them there are more pressing transportation needs. The premier recently said her government would support funding “rapid transit” in Hamilton, which would include buses.

Wednesday May 29, 2013The premier touted her party’s pledge to bring all-day GO service to Hamilton at the new James Street North station. A GO station is also proposed at the CN mainline and Centennial Parkway. GO has also looked at extending its service into Niagara.

“Every time I come to Hamilton region I hear about the desperate need for that,” the premier told reporters and about 50 people squeezed into the campaign office. “That has become a very high priority for us.”

There is talk CN is not too excited about having more commuter trains run along its mainline from the New York State border, but the premier said her government will find a way “to work with our partners to ensure we get full day, all-day GO service. It’s too important for the region not to do it. That’s a priority we are focused on.”

The Progressive Conservatives do not support a Hamilton LRT, saying the province cannot afford it, but the NDP have it in their campaign platform. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

 

Friday, June 6, 2014

Saturday, June 7, 2014What Are Your Top Reasons For Voting?

ADD YOUR LIST IN THE COMMENT BOX BELOW

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday, June 7, 2014

Saturday June 7, 2014Can’t stand any of them? Are you in a non-swing riding where you know marking an x won’t really mean anything? You can DECLINE YOUR VOTE.

The 41st Ontario general election will be held on June 12, 2014. It was ordered to take place by Lieutenant Governor David Onley on May 2, 2014. The decision came upon the recommendation of Premier Kathleen Wynne after Ontario New Democratic Party leader Andrea Horwath announced that the NDP, whose support was critical to the survival of the Ontario Liberal Party’s minority government in the 40th Legislative Assembly of Ontario, would vote against the Liberals’ proposed budget. (Source)

10 best reasons to vote this election

 1. Pick your billion-dollar transportation plan

 The Liberals will pay for rapid transit in Hamilton, but won’t utter the letters L-R-T. The New Democrats will fund light rail, but won’t say how. And the Tories, well, they’ll scrap it all in favour of a contentious mid-peninsula highway past the airport.

 2. Class size conundrum

 The Progressive Conservatives plan to increase class sizes for children of all ages, while at the same time cutting teachers and school staff. The consequence is more concentrated classrooms, which could be challenging for your kids. But the party will bring back the old math curriculum so your kids aren’t so dependant on calculators.

 3. Affordable housing

 More than 5,000 people are waiting for affordable housing in Hamilton, and the Liberals are the only ones with a platform to fix it. But the party’s commitments still fall desperately short of the need for more funding, housing stock and capital repairs.

 4. Crumbling roads and bridges

 The city has a $2-billion backlog on needed repairs to bridges, roads and other infrastructure and all it takes is a quick drive down Burlington Street to prove it. The Grits and the New Democrats have both pledged $29 billion to transportation over the next decade, but it’s not clear how much of that could end up on our city streets.

 5. Pension promises

 The centrepiece of the Liberal election platform is the creation of a provincial pension plan that would double the retirement income of recipients — a potential boon for the more than 3 million Ontario workers who haven’t saved enough. Is it the perfect solution or, as Ontario Tory Leader Tim Hudak put it, a “job-killing payroll tax”?

 6. Scandals

 From cancelled gas plants to a massive research bailout, Kathleen Wynne and her Liberals have been plagued by scandals on the campaign trail — and her political foes warn it’s not the end of it. This is your chance to hold the Grits accountable.

 7. 100,000 pink slips

Hudak says he’ll cut 100,000 public sector jobs and then create a million more jobs. His math has been widely criticized. Do you believe in a job-creation tax credit or a jobs and prosperity fund? On Thursday, you can choose your preferred plan — but you might want to brush up on your arithmetic before you cast your vote.

8. Think of those in need

 The Liberals and New Democrats promise to tackle poverty through initiatives such as student nutrition programs, child health and dental benefits, and higher wages for the lowest earners. The PCs also support boosting the minimum wage. These steps would benefit Hamiltonians — one in five of whom live below the poverty line — but they still fall short of a “living wage.”

9. School closures

 The Grits have offered incentives to close half-empty schools, while the New Democrats promise cash to keep them open. The Green party? It’ll create a single school system in Ontario, saving more than $1 billion a year — and, potentially, your neighbourhood school.

10. Democracy

 It’s been 70 years since D-Day when more than 350 Canadian soldiers died fighting for our freedom and democratic rights. Honour their ultimate sacrifice by getting to the polls. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

CBC Ontario Votes

CTV Election 2014

Spec Votes 2014

SOCIAL MEDIA

This cartoon appeared on National Newswatch, and Yahoo Canada News.

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Tuesday, June 3, 2014By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Kathleen Wynne accuses Andrea Horwath of ‘unprincipled’ stand over possible Tory coalition

Voting New Democrat could result in a coalition government led by the Progressive Conservatives, Premier Kathleen Wynne said on Saturday, even though the Tories have shot down the concept of teaming up with another party.

2003 Debate

Wynne accused NDP Leader Andrea Horwath of betraying her party’s long-standing commitment to social justice by refusing to rule out propping up Tim Hudak’s Conservatives if a minority government results after June 12.

Wynne also contrasted the priorities of New Democrat icons with Hudak’s plan to slash spending and cut 100,000 public-sector jobs to balance the budget.

“It is shocking that the party of Jack Layton and Stephen Lewis — the party that has traditionally supported social programs, the party that should have supported our budget — would be thinking about supporting Tim Hudak,” Wynne said at a rally.

 

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“Andrea Horwath’s NDP is a party that used to have principles. It used to stand for something.”

Horwath has taken an “unprincipled stance” by not ruling out supporting the Tories in a minority government, Wynne said.

[caption id=”” align=”alignright” width=”234″] 2007 Debate[/caption]

“A vote right now for Andrea Horwath might be a vote for Tim Hudak. But a vote for Kathleen Wynne is a vote for Kathleen Wynne.”

So far, Horwath has only said she’ll deal with the election outcome after the votes are in. In recent days, she has stepped up her attacks on Wynne by calling the Liberals “rife with corruption.”

2011 Debate

In a statement released Saturday afternoon, Horwath said Wynne was grasping at straws.

“I have to say Ms. Wynne is in La-La land. She needs a bit of a reality check if she thinks New Democrats are going to allow her to sweep Liberal corruption under the rug in the province of Ontario. Ontarians deserve much, much better than that.

“And they certainly do not want to see a Hudak regime take over that’s going to fire hundreds of thousands of people in some strange attempt to create jobs. That math does not work out.” (Source: Toronto Star)

 

More: Two decades of Ontario Elections

SOCIAL MEDIA

Posted at the cartoon of the day at Yahoo Canada News.