Canada election: Carney says Trump ‘respected sovereignty of our country’ during private call
The NDP finally gets its wings
By David Thurton
Travelling with the NDP here. We are about to fly out of Toronto to Ottawa.
This is the first time Singh’s campaign is going airborne. That’s noteworthy because the first week of the campaign was literally and figuratively grounded.
The NDP began significantly behind in the polls, and opted to spend all of its first week on a bus. At one point, we travelled between Montreal and Toronto — a six-hour drive.
The campaign spent more time on the road getting to its next event than campaigning. In such a short election race like this, every moment matters.
The campaign schedule picked up steam on Wednesday, while on a Hamilton swing. But we never visited steelworkers or labour leaders. Instead, we visited a seniors’ centre twice and a pizza joint.
Thursday, the day after Donald Trump’s auto-tariff announcement, the campaign team seemed to course-correct. It made a last-minute decision to head to Windsor, the automotive capital of Canada.
That decision reaped rewards for the party. Newscasts and websites featured images of Singh with his sleeves rolled up, meeting union leaders and autoworkers.
There is no doubt the NDP has missed opportunities to capture voters’ attention in an election where much of the focus seemed to be on the Conservatives and the Liberals — nor that they hope things can only go up from here.
The NDP’s campaign has finally taken flight, quite literally, as they make their way from Toronto to Ottawa. This marks a significant shift from their previous grounded approach, where they spent the majority of their time on a bus travelling between cities. Despite starting behind in the polls, the NDP is now making strides to connect with voters in a more dynamic way.
During their recent swing through Hamilton, the campaign made a conscious effort to engage with different demographics, visiting a seniors’ centre and a local pizza joint. However, it wasn’t until they made a spontaneous trip to Windsor, the heart of Canada’s automotive industry, that they truly began to gain traction.
By meeting with union leaders and autoworkers in Windsor, Singh was able to showcase his commitment to supporting working-class Canadians. This move garnered significant media attention and helped to shift the narrative surrounding the NDP campaign.
While the party may have initially struggled to break through the noise of the election, their recent actions indicate a newfound momentum and determination to make their mark. As they continue to reach out to voters and engage with key stakeholders, the NDP is poised to make a lasting impact on this election cycle.
