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Since the June 7 provincial election, many have been trying to understand, or to justify, how Doug Ford and the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario got elected.

Oddly enough, Democrats said the same thing after Donald Trump was elected president in the United States, although that’s where logical comparisons end.

Just as in the U.S., many questioned how anyone could vote for “that guy” over the typical candidate.

What that clearly confirms is just how out of touch most political parties are with what the average voter is experiencing.

1:41 ‘I don’t support tariffs’: Premier- Designate Doug Ford says when it comes to steel, aluminum and Ontario’s auto sector ‘I don’t support tariffs’: Premier- Designate Doug Ford says when it comes to steel, aluminum and Ontario’s auto sector

WATCH: ‘I don’t support tariffs,’ premier-designate Doug Ford says when it comes to steel, aluminum and Ontario’s auto sector

It doesn’t necessarily mean they wholeheartedly approve of the candidate, just that anyone is better than the status quo.

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A protest vote signals the electorate is not being listened to. It’s not about change for the sake of change, it’s about respect.

A new poll from Navigator confirms what I and many experts of all political stripes said long ago: the Kathleen Wynne Liberals failed to listen to Ontarians. And when we spoke up, they called us “bad actors.”

The Liberals exploited green energy sympathizers to line their own pockets and political gain, while steering to the extreme left to ward off the NDP.

It wasn’t their agenda that turned Ontarians off, it was their arrogance and lack of respect for the hard-working taxpayer.

Some may call it populism, others will call it democracy: political parties that ignore voters do so at their own peril.

It’s not rocket science.

Scott Thompson is the host of The Scott Thompson Show on Global News Radio 900 CHML.