Here's why city councillors are endorsing provincial candidates
A growing list of municipal politicians are hoping to influence your choice in the upcoming provincial election.
On Monday, London West PC Candidate Paul Paolatto canvassed alongside Coun. Steve Lehman in Ward 8.
Lehman believes his endorsement of a provincial candidate can strengthen relations between the two levels of government.
“Paul is someone I can pick up the phone with and talk to about issues that affect the ward and London,” Lehman explained.
Paolatto adds that these kinds of endorsement can improve how local constituents are served by both levels of government.
“If you see the province and the municipality working well together, that can only serve Londoners better,” Paolatto said.
Meanwhile, Coun. Mariam Hamou has endorsed Green Party Candidate Carol Dyck in the riding of London North Centre.
Hamou acknowledges that backing one candidate over the others could be politically awkward if Dyck doesn’t win.
Coun. Mariam Hamou has endorsed the Green Party candidate but also welcomed PC and NDP signs on her lawn, May 16, 2022. (Daryl Newcombe/CTV News London)“It’s a risk, but I’m doing it in good faith,” Hamou explained. “I’m not doing it to play partisan politics. I’m doing it because I actually believe in what she’s done, and I’ve worked with her.”
In Windsor, concern has been raised that endorsements could be seen as an overreach of political influence by those in office.
Last week Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens raised eyebrows when he backed a PC endorsement.
Experts warn that these endorsement could backfire.
Political Scientist Dr. Lydia Miljan says city council members risk alienating their own voter base ahead of this fall’s municipal election, based on their provincial endorsements.
“There’s no rules for endorsing candidates if you are a municipal politician, though the municipality is under the purview of the provincial government,” adds Miljan.
Though she’s announced her intention to vote Green, Councillor Hamou has also allotted space on her front lawn for signs by PC Candidate Jerry Pribil and NDP Candidate Terence Kernaghan.
“We are not going to do very badly in London North Centre if we elect any one of these three people,” she said.
Ontarians go to the polls June 2.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.