Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative party has won a majority in legislative elections in Ontario, Canada’s most populous province. The party is expected to win 83 of the provincial legislature’s 124 seats according to projections made on Thursday. Ford became president in 2018 and faced criticism over his handling of the province’s strained healthcare system and coronavirus pandemic.
The leaders of the New Democratic Party, the main opponents of the Progressive Conservative Party, and the Liberals announced they would step down after the victory Thursday night. Ontario is home to almost 40% of Canada’s population and the government is one of the world’s largest sub-sovereign borrowers with publicly held debt currently at $331bn.
Read more: Doug Ford set to return as Ontario premier after election sweep
