Canada's most populous province and a vital auto industry company said Friday it will call an early election on Friday as it says it needs a stronger hand with President Trump's plan to impose tariffs on Canadian exports.
“With a strong mandate, we will be able to fight Donald Trump to make sure we stop the tariffs,” he said.
Mr. Ford has emerged as one of the strongest political voices against Mr. Trump, who claims Canada has an unfair economic advantage in the United States.
“He's going to try to destroy our country,” Mr Ford told reporters recently of the US president.
Ontario's auto industry is deeply integrated with each other's auto industry and components, including parts and components, before vehicles are fully assembled.
A blanket tariff of 25 percent, which Mr. Trump said he would apply on February 1 could lose more than 500,000 jobs, according to Mr. Ford.
Ontario is also a major producer of hydroelectric power that flows across the border and supplies power to New England, which Mr. Ford said the province could hold as a form of retaliation.
“We're going to go to the extent of cutting off their power very soon,” he said.
At such a potentially dangerous moment, Mr. Ford decided to step back and make way for a new party leader and prime minister, partly because Justin Trudeau did not have a strong bargaining position at the federal level.
“We need a loud voice at the table,” Mr. Ford said.
Mr. Ford's party already holds a majority of seats in the Ontario legislature, but the Conservatives' increased seats will increase their ability to move aggressively in a turbulent political climate with Canada's largest trading partner.
“The opposition treats you with a bit more respect as opposed to being sensitive,” Mr Ford said. Elections will now be held on February 27, with June 2026 as the fixed election date.
Opposition leaders said that early elections are unnecessary because they are defending the province and the country and supporting the country against tariffs.
Mr. Ford has been making the rounds with TOX news, including FOX news, criticizing Mr. Trump over the tariffs. He also launched a multi-dollar advertising campaign reminding viewers of Ontario's energy and mineral contributions to the United States.
Mr. Trump told attendees at the Davos Economic Forum in Switzerland on Thursday that they had surrendered, saying the U.S. does not need Canadian exports such as lumber, oil and gas.
“We have our own,” Mr. Trump said.