PC candidates keeping low campaign profile leaving Peel voters in the dark

When asked earlier this week if the PCs have explicitly told local candidates across the province not to participate in debates and whether candidates have been ordered not to answer questions from media, a PC spokesperson responded: “Ontario PC candidates will spend every day of the campaign at people’s doors, speaking to voters about our plan to protect Ontario.”  

Under Doug Ford, the PC strategy has been to control the messaging, taking few questions from media and rarely allowing MPPs to address issues on their own. It’s not unique, as more and more governments in Canada and the U.S. now operate in a similar fashion, often using social media or their own platforms to engage with the public through a centralized and heavily controlled flow of information. Gone are the days when an MPP or MP was readily available to the media or local residents who organized community events and election debates.

On Monday, according to the NDP, PC candidate and incumbent Hardeep Grewal failed to show up for a scheduled local debate in Brampton East. Grewal’s absence left voters without the opportunity to hear the candidates’ response to local issues and concerns. Liberal candidate Vicky Dhillon, a former Brampton city councillor, also did not attend, drawing criticism from the NDP, whose candidate, Martin Singh, showed up prepared to debate his opponents on a range of issues, both local and provincial. 

“Brampton East Voters Let Down as Conservative and Liberal Candidates Skip Local Debate,” was the headline in an NDP email to The Pointer Monday.

“A disappointing turn of events unfolded today as both the Conservative and Liberal candidates failed to attend the scheduled local debate in Brampton East,” the NDP wrote in the email. “Despite being challenged to attend and engage with the community, neither candidate showed up, leaving voters without the opportunity to hear directly from those seeking their support.”

Singh said, “This is a clear message to the voters of Brampton East. The absence of both the Conservative and Liberal candidates speaks volumes about their unwillingness to face tough questions and take responsibility. It’s disheartening that, instead of showing up to answer the concerns of the people they hope to represent, they chose to stay out of the conversation.”

He continued.

“Brampton East deserves leaders who show up, engage, and take accountability. This is a community that deserves to be taken seriously, and I will always be here to listen to their concerns and stand up for their needs. I will never shy away from taking responsibility and being open to tough conversations.”

During the 2018 election campaign Ford abandoned the standard practice of having reporters tag alongside the Party leader and he scrapped plans to have a media bus following his election tour. During the 2022 campaign he again restricted media exposure. 

His strategy to limit questions from journalists raises concern from democracy advocate Duff Conacher, co-founder of Democracy Watch, who fears Ford and other PC candidates that do not show up to events or provide media availability are “undermining the democratic practice”.

It also sends the message that the Party “clearly [doesn’t] believe in it if they're hiding from public accountability and questioning,” he told The Pointer. He added that constituents should not be voting for any candidates that will not show up to public meetings or be open to media interviews as it sends a message that they are hiding, “and someone who hides from the public is not someone you should want in public office.”

“It undermines the democratic process of an election, which is all about public accountability, if a candidate says I'm refusing to show up and be held accountable by the public or the media through questioning in town halls or interviews.” 

PC Party leader Doug Ford recently barred reporters from asking more than six questions during press conferences from now on.

(Government of Ontario) 

During a press conference last week Ford shut down questions from the media after it was reported that the gallery was told press conferences with the Party leader will be limited to six questions for the remainder of the election campaign. 

The Pointer also reached out to all of Peel’s PC candidates to arrange an interview to discuss local issues in Mississauga and Brampton. All but the offices of two candidates, who told The Pointer to use another email, did not respond.

“Doug Ford doesn’t want to answer for how he’s failed Ontario,” Liberal spokesperson Bahoz Dara Aziz told The Pointer. “He doesn’t want to answer all the media’s questions. Why would we ever expect his candidates to behave any differently? They’re running in an unnecessary election called to help Doug Ford outrun an RCMP investigation into his government. Who’d want to defend that to the people they are seeking to represent?” 

The Green Party and NDP were also asked to respond to the PC strategy but did not provide comment ahead of publication. 

Brampton East PC candidate and incumbent Hardeep Grewal (right) recently failed to show up to a candidate debate. Liberal candidate Vicky Dhillon was also absent, while the NDP’s Martin Singh showed up.

(Government of Ontario) 

“The other message that they're sending is that they don't really care what voters think, and that they're just going to toe the line that their party leader sets down, and no voters should want someone who's just representing the leader's interests,” Conacher said. “The whole idea is to have someone who will represent your interests to the party leader, whether they're the premier or whether they're an opposition party leader.”

“That's how it's supposed to work. The candidates are running for office to represent voters, not to represent their party leader and ignore voters, and the message they're sending when they won't show up to town halls or do interviews is that they're perfectly fine with ignoring voters and doing what their party leader says to do.”

Recognizing that candidates who are elected have to balance the Party’s mandate and the leader’s interests, Conacher stressed that candidates also have to play a role in delivering on local concerns, “but if you're not even delivering the message, you don't really care what the voters who vote for you are concerned about, and you're just towing the party line, then you're not even doing the basic part of your job.” 

The Town of Port Credit Residents Association (TOPCA), alongside several other Mississauga ratepayer associations, is hosting a candidates debate on February 21st at Clarke Memorial Hall for the Mississauga—Lakeshore riding. The debate will give residents the chance to hear from the local candidates on issues important to the riding, including Ministerial Zoning Orders, transit funding, the food crisis, healthcare, the lack of affordable housing and cuts to education, according to a press release.

TOPCA President Mary Simpson confirmed to The Pointer on Tuesday the Association has not received a response or any indication from the riding’s incumbent and PC candidate Rudy Cuzzetto of his intention to attend, despite hand delivering the invitation to his office. Liberal candidate Elizabeth Mendes and NDP candidate Spencer Ki have already confirmed they will be attending. 

Beatrice Wayne, research director at the Samara Centre for Democracy, said the Centre has seen this practice at all levels of government and across parties, calling it a “systemic issue” and “a larger problem of broken communication between Canadians, candidates and elected officials in general.” The threat of this lack of engagement from politicians, she said, also pushes people away from voting. 

Through the Centre’s research, Wayne also said constituents have increasingly felt a decrease in communication from their elected officials and that their representatives do not care what they think; they are only motivated by getting the vote they need to stay in power — something she says is often reinforced when candidates fail to show up to debates, town halls or answer media questions.  

“This form of disengagement means that candidates don't get a good sense about the concerns of their constituents. They're not learning from people in their community what they really care about,” Wayne said.  

“And we know from research that elected officials, not just candidates, but elected officials, continually mistake their constituent viewpoints. They don't have a good handle on what their constituents think about particular policies. And this means that if these candidates are elected and make policies, if they're not talking consistently with their constituents, they're not going to be able to push for policies that their community wants.”

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Twitter: @mcpaigepeacock 

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