In the first sit-down interview since the stinging results of her weekend leadership review, New Democrat Leader Marit Stiles said the exit of her top two staffers is the start of a transformation meant to usurp Premier Doug Ford.
The lower-than-expected 68 per cent endorsement of her leadership by party faithful has “crystallized” her focus on changes that, Stiles said, include campaign preparations “starting now,” a plan to develop the next generation of leaders and, hiring experienced staff from winning elections, such as those involved in the NDP’s majority governments in Manitoba and Alberta.
“We know we can’t run the same campaign” against a “premier who is a jobs disaster” Stiles told
Stiles’ promise to oust Ford is ambitious.
In the latest Abacus Data poll, Ford’s Progressive Conservatives have 52 per cent support compared to the NDP’s 12 per cent and the Liberal’s 24 per cent. Ford’s personal rating was 46 per cent positive, compared to 28 per cent positive for Stiles and 29 per cent for Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie.
As rival political parties struggle with leadership challenges, Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive
The NDP review came six days after Crombie won the backing of just 57 per cent of party delegates in her mandatory post-election review. When the Liberal results were announced on Sept. 14, none of Crombie’s caucus members stood with her on the stage as she promised to prevail, only to resign a few hours later.
Stiles said the outcome of the NDP vote, tallied last Saturday, left her questioning her viability with the party. Â
“In the moment, I have to admit, I thought, you know, should I be the one to move this forward? ... I was thinking, should I be continuing? And I went to my caucus and I had their unanimous support,” she said.
“I can say that very clearly. They were adamant that they needed me to continue.”
After the meeting with her MPPs ended, they stood behind her on stage and Stiles told the crowd their message resonated.Â
“We cannot run the same election campaign that we ran last time,” Stiles said. Â
At Queen’s Park, on Tuesday, Stiles said she plans to strengthen ties with the labour movement, which traditionally supported the party until Ford swayed some unions to endorse the Progressive Conservatives. She said the Ontario Federation of Labour and affiliates want to “work and strengthen the relationship and build a stronger partnership.”
While the party did not have organized groups such as the New Leaf Liberals openly campaigning for a new leader, Stiles attributed the lower-than-expected vote mainly to a “few people from each riding” who wanted to change.Â
Now, Stiles said, she is ready to deliver.
“I’m a leader who has a more clear sense of the change that needs to happen to win. And I feel like I have a very clear sense of what is needed to make that kind of change and to deliver that result. I feel there’s actually clarity for me and opportunity in this moment.”
In the Feb. 27 election, Stiles’ NDP won 931,796 votes compared with 2.15 million for the PCs, 1.5 million for the Grits and 242,822 for the Greens. While Crombie’s Liberals had a significantly higher vote count that did not translate into wins, leaving them with 14 MPPs compared to the NDP’s 27.Â
As leader of the official opposition, Stiles said she is going to hold Ford accountable for his “failures” in job creation, housing starts and health care.
“I’m going to keep focusing on what the people of Ontario tell me they need. Right now, the crisis is deepening, it’s not getting better,” she said. “What I see coming, is a disaster.”
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