Ontario PCs hoping early election brings about 'strong mandate' to deal with Trump

The start of Donald Trump's second term as president of the United States was a driving force behind Ontario Premier Doug Ford's decision to call an early election, a member of the premier's cabinet says.

Premier Doug Ford said Friday that he plans to call an early provincial election on Wednesday, which would mean Ontarians will head to the polls on Feb. 27.

The election call would come less than two weeks after Donald Trump was sworn in for his second term as president of the United States. During Trump's campaign, and since his inauguration, he's repeatedly spoke about plans to impose a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian goods, which could take effect as soon as Feb. 1.

During a speech at the World Economic Forum last week, Trump also said the U.S. doesn't need Canadian oil, gas, vehicles, or lumber, and has also made comments about Canada becoming the 51st state.

"We've been concerned with regards to President Trump, from the time he was elected, as to what that was going to mean for Canada, and more specifically to Ontario, with regards to his room with tariffs," said Kevin Holland, Thunder Bay-Atikokan MPP and Ontario associate minister of forestry and forest products. "I was taking the approach that I hope that it was pre-inauguration blustering, but we can't we can't count on that."

"We need a strong government with a strong mandate for the full term of President Trump's term in office to ensure that the interest of Ontarians, Ontario business and Ontario industry is going to be protected," he said. "We know the president is volatile, he shoots from the hip, as they say, and we needed to ensure that we had a good, strong government in place for the full term of his presidency to deal with whatever may be coming forward."

Ontario Energy Minister Stephen Lecce was part of a delegation that travelled to Washington, D.C., on behalf of the province, for Trump's inauguration.

"We came there with one mission, which is to fight for our province and standing up for our jobs," Lecce said. "One of the big benefits we have ... is they need access to our critical minerals."

"I reminded our American colleagues, particularly from the Republican Party that, look, it's a binary choice. It's either you're buying minerals from China or authoritarian regimes, or you're buying them from Democratic Canada."

"You're either buying oil from the human rights-abusing regime of Venezuela, or you're buying it from Canada," he said. "You're buying uranium for their nuclear fleet from Russia and financing the war in Ukraine, or you're buying it from Canada."

Meanwhile, Ontario's NDP leader Marit Stiles released a statement on Friday, saying her party would be better-equipped to handle Trump.

"For seven long years, Doug Ford has been on the side of wealthy insiders, while life for working people has gotten harder and more expensive," the statement reads. "How can we trust him to stand up against Donald Trump and his billionaires when he can't deliver on making life more affordable, getting people a family doctor, or building more homes?"

Thunder Bay-Superior North NDP MPP Lise Vaugeois could not be reached for comment on Friday.

Lecce noted that Trump is starting his second presidential term with "maximum political capital."

But, he said, "I think we could differentiate between (Trump's) opinions on (social media) and the facts."

"I think objectively, Republicans and Democrats in America understand that they need allies to give them access to commodities and resources that they don't have."

"The Chinese government, the regime in Beijing, just a month and a half ago announced that they are ending the export of all critical minerals that are necessary for the U.S. national security, to the U.S.," Lecce said. "The adversaries of the world are working against America."

Meanwhile, Lecce said, Canada and the U.S. have had an "enduring relationship, peaceful relationship, around the values of democracy and freedom."

"In a world where national security is very much inter-tied now with energy security, I want to believe, and I believe, that message is going to resonate with the president, ultimately," he said. "In the meantime, we've got to be active."

That activity has included Ford appearances on various American news networks, including those favoured by Trump, and even social media ads targeting the area around Mar-A-Lago to increase the likelihood that Trump will see them when he's logged in, Lecce said.

Holland added that Canadian lumber is a key import for the U.S.

"We need to remind them what the reliance on Canadian natural resources actually is," he said, adding that 1/3 of the lumber the U.S. needs to meet its own housing demand comes from Canada. Damage from natural disasters, such as the wildfires in California, is escalating that demand, Holland said.

"We know that the lumber being produced in Canada is stronger and higher quality than the other lumber from other parts of the world," he said. "We need to educate them on that."