The leader of Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, has kicked off his provincial election campaign, saying he needs a strong mandate to fight the tariffs threatened by U.S.

While Premier Doug Ford insists that U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff threat is why he's calling an election 15 months ahead of schedule, there are plenty of reasons why the timing is politically advantageous to Ford and his Ontario PC Party.

TORONTO — Ontario Premier Doug Ford officially set a provincial election in motion Tuesday for Feb. 27, more than a year before the next fixed election date. The election had been set for June 2026, but Ford said he needs a new mandate to deal with four years of a Donald Trump presidency in the United States.

Ontario premier Doug Ford has triggered an early election in the province, saying he needs a strong mandate to take on the tariff threat.

The leader of Canada’s most populous province says he will be calling an election in Ontario because he says he needs a mandate to fight U.S.

TORONTO — Premier Doug Ford plans to call a snap election next Wednesday and send Ontarians to the polls on Feb. 27, The Canadian Press reported Thursday. Two senior government sources said Ford recently made the decision for the rare winter election after waffling for months.