Campaign promises that won, and lost, elections

By News Staff

Elections are won, and sometimes lost, on promises.

Monday’s throne speech offered vague vows to cut hospital wait times and lower child-care costs — the details of which will be announced in the upcoming budget.

But for the reeling Liberals the speech was seen as a crucial attempt to hint at larger promises that could sway the electorate away from the surging Conservatives under newly-crowned leader, Doug Ford.

Early polling has the Conservatives in the lead.

We all know that election promises are often broken. But they do have the power to make or break a party. Here’s a look back at some key campaign vows that either propelled a candidate to victory, or sealed their fate.

Trudeau promises to legalize marijuana – Result: WIN

Sure he had the charm, looks, and political pedigree, but many cite Justin Trudeau’s vow to legalize and control the sale of marijuana as the game-changer that propelled him to victory over Stephen Harper in the October 2015 federal election. It was a bold promise that would make Canada the first G8 nation to legalize the long-villainized plant. Combined with his progressive views on a variety of topics, Trudeau was able to secure the votes of the often-ignored 18-24 demographic. The result was a majority government. The bill to legalize marijuana for recreational purposes remains before the Senate but is expected to pass sometime this summer.

Dalton McGuinty puts family first – Result: WIN

Several factors were at play when Dalton McGuinty became the first Liberal premier to win back-to-back majority governments in October 2007 (see below). But his campaign vow to declare a new statutory holiday was music to the ears of many hard-working Ontarians. It worked, with McGuinty coming out ahead of Progressive Conservative Leader John Tory and NDP Leader Howard Hampton. McGuinty followed up on his promise, declaring the third Monday of every February, Family Day. “This is a small thing, but it’s … a powerful recognition of our priorities,” McGuinty said. “I think the single most valuable commodity, so to speak, for our families would be time spent together, so that’s the motivation behind this.”

Tory vows to fund faith-based schools – Result: LOSS

Heading into the 2007 general election, PC leader John Tory vowed to eliminate the health care tax, reinvest gas tax money into public transit and roads, and address a troubling doctor shortage in Ontario. But the public seized on one unpopular part of his platform and never let go. Tory promised to extend public funding to faith-based schools. The topic dominated the election news cycle and ultimately led to Tory losing not only the race for premier, but he also lost in his own riding of Don Valley West to Liberal incumbent Kathleen Wynne. Tory later admitted that he made a mistake by proposing the faith-based funding.

Rob Ford touts subways, subways, subways – Result: WIN

The late Rob Ford made many bold promises when he was campaigning for mayor back in October 2010. He vowed to “Stop the gravy train” and clamp down on government overspending. Unlike some of his competitors’ convoluted transit plans, Ford’s was simple: Subways, subways, subways. His championing of the Scarborough subway extension paid dividends on election night, with Ford easily sweeping the vote-rich east end of the city en route to a commanding victory over George Smitherman and Joe Pantalone.

Hudak cuts like a knife – Result: LOSS

During the 2014 provincial election, PC leader Tim Hudak thought he had a bright idea. It turned out to be one that would darken his political future, and set the PC party back considerably. Hudak vowed to eliminate 100,000 public service jobs in a bid to balance the budget. It was a bold move that bombed on election night, and it helped propel Kathleen Wynne’s Liberals from a minority, to a majority government. Following the dismal result, Hudak abruptly resigned as PC leader.

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