HORWATH MAKES PITCH TO DISAFFECTED LIBERAL VOTERS

Only the New Democrats can prevent the Progressive Conservatives under Doug Ford from forming government in Ontario next week, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said Friday in her most direct pitch yet to Liberal voters. Speaking in Toronto, Horwath said she expects a close election on Thursday. “One thing is certain: Ontarians will elect a new premier to replace Kathleen Wynne,” Horwath said in the Liberal premier’s own riding. “The choice is between me and Doug Ford, (and) to those who have voted Liberal in the past, I invite you to join us to stop Doug Ford and vote for the kind of change that Ontario needs.” In past elections, voters opposed to the Conservatives have tended to coalesce around the Liberals as their best bet. This time, however, it appears the strategic vote is poised to break in Horwath’s favour. Myer Siemiatycki, a politics professor at Ryerson University, said polling suggests a shift to the NDP away from the Liberals began unusually early this campaign given the “fear factor” around the Tories.