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The NDP didn't exactly do much to convince voters it would be a sound steward of the public purse

It was a small error, perhaps, considering the overall size of the budget. But it was a revealing one, a reminder that the Ontario NDP has not had to be serious about taking actual power. It was also revealing of Horwath’s respect for public money when she shrugged it off, saying simply that it would take a bit longer to balance the books.

This election, to put it mildly, has not seen a particularly good showing from any party. The people of Canada’s most populous and economically significant province deserve better. Alas, that won’t happen this time. But the Ontario PCs are at least — unlike the other two parties — not in total denial about the many things broken in the province today. The PCs, uniquely, are generally committed to reducing the size and cost of government and understand the importance of business as the driver of all prosperity. They also exude nothing like the rank stench of scandal that hangs over the incumbent Liberals.

An inexperienced premier Ford will nonetheless have experienced, credible legislative veterans around him

An inexperienced premier Ford will nonetheless have experienced, credible legislative veterans around him. The lack of a proper campaign platform is certainly worrisome, but in reality, given the Liberals’ affinity for cooking the books, no party’s campaign platform will survive the first day. Accountants will need free rein to assess Ontario’s true fiscal status — something the Tories have pledged to arrange without delay. Only then will it be possible to produce anything like a realistic, costed plan.

So, while this is probably not the best choice Ontario has ever had, it is a clear choice: the Liberals must go and the NDP must not win. Ontario would therefore best be served by a Progressive Conservative government led by Doug Ford.