With the NDP leadership race just five days away, many of the candidates showed up Monday night to celebrate what had been predicted to be a sure victory for Craig Scott in Toronto-Danforth, Jack Layton’s former riding. They weren’t disappointed. Scott was welcomed by chants of “NDP” from the energetic crowd that filled the Opera [...]

As expected by most observers, NDP candidate Craig Scott has won the riding of Toronto-Danforth in a by-election held today. Scott will succeed the late Jack Layton, who served as MP for the riding from 2004–2011. With 110 out of 196 polls reporting so far, Scott has garnered 59 per cent of the vote. Liberal [...]

It’s official. Yesterday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced that the by-election for Jack Layton’s former riding, Toronto-Danforth, will take place on March 12 March 19. (UPDATE, 1:25 PM: Prime Minister Harper just changed the date of the by-election.) The riding has been without a representative in the House of Commons since August, when Layton died [...]

As widely expected, Peggy Nash, the NDP’s finance critic and MP for Parkdale-High Park, took to the floor of the Gladstone Hotel yesterday morning and entered the race to succeed Jack Layton as leader of the federal NDP. And Nash came out swinging: yes, she will need to win party members’ support in the NDP’s [...]

The New Democrats got their seventh entrant into the race for leader today, as Toronto MP Peggy Nash (Parkdale-High Park) threw her hat in the ring as well. Several local politicians came to show their support at her launch event, held at the Gladstone Hotel, including all the ones representing her riding at other levels [...]

Last week’s provincial election was the first in which social media were mature enough to play a role. That fact proved a boon for tv networks, not only providing old-school talking heads another way to fill dead air while waiting to see which former Walmart greeter had won the day in North Huckleberry, but introducing [...]

So, that happened. Really, what else are we supposed to say about the provincial election? For all the furor over the possibility of a minority government, we already know what’s going to happen. Dalton McGuinty will be in charge. Tim Hudak will do nothing to bring down the government until he thinks he can win; [...]

LIBERAL MINORITY GOVERNMENT (Needed for majority: 54) Liberal: 53 (Last session: 71) Progressive Conservative: 37 (Last session: 26) New Democrat: 17 (Last session: 10) Green: 0 (Last session: 0) 12:18 AM: We’ll have more and more nuanced thoughts about tonight’s results in the morning. But for now: good night! 12:13 AM: Answer: as a win. [...]

Besides lawn signs and public meetings, newspaper advertisements have long been a preferred method for Ontario politicians to spread their message to the public. Whether it’s a simple promise to provide “good government” or a full platform requiring a magnifying glass to read, the press has offered a forum for candidates to make their case [...]

Ontarians are going to the polls this week, and though this has been a bit of a sleeper election, the results do matter. With Conservatives in office in Ottawa, and conservatives in office at City Hall, many are wondering if Tim Hudak can make it a trifecta. If you’re still not sure how you’re voting, [...]

In the run-up to the provincial election on October 6, we’ll be comparing the major parties’ platforms on issues that matter to urban voters. The economy is a meta-issue, or a super-plank, the issue under which all other issues are subsumed. If the economy doesn’t work, then there’s no money to pay for any of [...]

It was a dreary day for a provincial election in Toronto. The drizzle began shortly after the polls opened on August 4, 1943, slowing down the early morning lines of ballot casters. As the rain intensified, election officials noticed a lighter-than-usual turnout. It wasn’t entirely the rain’s fault—with a war on, many eligible voters were [...]