NDP leader works to grab the spotlight in Ontario election debate
Ford was respectful, Wynne solid on policy, but neither likely swayed undecided voters
It was supposed to be a discussion about house prices. But somehow it devolved into PC Leader Doug Ford and Liberal Leader Kathleen Wynne bickering over who was kowtowing more to developers.
Finally, AndreaHorwathstepped in.
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"I think the question was about affordable housing for young people," the NDP leader scolded. "Let's remember what we're talking about."
It's not the sort of headline-making zinger we look for in election debates. But Horwathaccomplished the one thing she needed toin Monday night's provincial election debate: remind voters that New Democrats are a viable alternative.
'The centre of interest'
The first debate attended by the three major-partycandidates ahead of the June 7provincial election wasn't a game changer, which is no surprise given the campaign doesn't even officially start for another day.
Still, of the three leaders,Horwathcame out of Monday night's 75-minute debate ahead of where she was when she went in.
"She will now be the centre of interest," said GeneviveTellier, a political studies professor at the University of Ottawa. "Even if you didn't think you wanted to vote for her, you're more likely to pay more attention to her now."
Horwath'sperformance was notflawless. Her team must havetold her to smile, because she had a wide-eyed grin pasted on during her opening statement. (Everyone's opening remarks were poor, withWynnelooking slightly dour and Ford stilted.)
And the NDP'splan to buy backHydro One from the private sector whichWynnereferred to as "magical thinking" is vague at best.
ButHorwathseemed genuine in responding to pre-selected members of the publicwho askedquestions during the debate, which was organized and broadcast by the City television network. She seemed personableand reasonable (if you consider raising taxes on corporations to fund your platform to be reasonable).
Her go-tomove was to stand apart from Ford andWynne, literally point at them and say, "We don't have to choose between bad and worse;we can actually have change for the better in our province."
Wynnesolid, if lacking spark
Wynneshowed her usual mastery of policy, perhaps a bit too much at times.
Granted, defending five years' worth of government decisions does not lend itself to pithy quotes. And it's hard not to get into the weeds when battling half-truth assertionsabout, say, whether new legislation opens the door to privatizing policing. (A new Police Services Act will allow cities to hire civilians for things like crime prevention and traffic control.)
But Wynneallowed her inner policy wonk out on a few occasions. At one point, she talked about "inclusionaryzoning" to help municipal governments compeldevelopers to build more affordable housing. It was only a passing reference, and it shouldn't be a mark against you to speaklike you understand your own policies, but it sounds a bit too high-falutin' when you're up against an opponentwho boasts about rooting "for the little guy."
She told Ford that he can't simply use a campaign slogan as a policy. But she also can't use a policy as a slogan.
"If you're inclined to support the Liberals, she spoke very effectively," said David Coletto, CEO of Abacus Data. However, polls show that eight in 10 Ontarianswant a change in provincial leadership, he said, and if this debate was supposed to convince voters otherwise, "Kathleen Wynnedidn't do that."
Ford against safe injection sites 'in neighbourhoods'
Not that Ford had his best outing either. The uncontested front-runner at the moment, Fordcan be sharp in a one-on-one interview, but a formal debate? Not his forte. Of the three candidates, Ford is the least experienced in thisdebate format and it showed.His prepared statementswere stiff, and near thestarthe stood silently whileWynne and Horwath sparredbetweenthemselves.
But the bar for success for Monday's debate was low for Ford.Considered by some to be unpredictable, Ford kept a respectful tone, asidefrom a moment when he toldWynne, "Kathleen, you got a nice smile on your face there."
The format of the debate had candidates standing close to each other andwithout a podium. Ford found himselfawkwardly staring directly at Wynnebefore asking her a question.
It was an uncomfortable moment to which a steely eyed Wynne responded: "So do you."
Some of Ford's policies continued to evolve, possibly even during the debate. Where he once suggested legalized marijuana be sold through private shops, henow wants to sell it from inside provincial liquorstores. And hecaught some observers off-guard by saying he"will not havesafe injection sites in neighbourhoods," as earlier in the day hisparty had said they'd be consulting with experts onthe issue. It wasunclear what Ford's policywould mean for cities where supervised injection sites, which are legal, are already operating.
Both Wynne and Horwathwere successful in hounding him about how he would pay for his promises to lower corporate taxes, reduce hydro bills, find $6 billion in "efficiencies"in the budget over three years, shorten hospital wait times and new Monday night spend an additional $5 billion on transit, all without laying off a single provincial employee. He did not have a convincing answer, and often responded with assertions that the Liberals had mismanaged the province for 15 years.
Sorting out the costing and other detailsof Ford's platform will become key points of focus for pundits in coming days. But now they'll have an additional focus:whether this debate has alerted Ontarians looking for changeto the possibility of NDP'sAndrea Horwath.
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