1985 Ontario general election


The 1985 Ontario general election was held on May 2, 1985, to elect members of the 33rd Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada. The Progressive Conservatives won the most seats, but not a majority. Shortly after, the Progressive Conservatives' 42 years of governance in Ontario came to an end via a confidence vote defeating Premier Frank Miller's minority government. David Peterson's Liberals then formed a minority government with the support of Bob Rae's NDP.

Prelude

Near Thanksgiving of 1984, longstanding Premier Bill Davis announced that he would be stepping down as Premier and leader of the Ontario PCs in early 1985. Davis, in office since 1971, had rung up a string of electoral victories by pursuing a moderate agenda and relying on the skill of the Big Blue Machine team of advisors. Davis, who remained generally popular throughout his term in office, would unveil a surprise legacy project: Full funding for Ontario's separate Catholic school system, which would become known as Bill 30. This decision was supported by both other parties, but was generally unpopular, especially in the Tory base.
The subsequent leadership race saw the PC party divide into two rough camps. The moderate and mainly urban wing was represented by second-place finisher Larry Grossman. The more strongly conservative rural faction backed eventual victor Frank Miller. After Miller's victory at the convention, the party's factions failed to reconcile, which was important especially because many moderate members of the Big Blue Machine were pushed aside.

Election

Despite these problems, the PCs remained far ahead in the polls, and when Miller called an election just six weeks after becoming premier, he was some twenty percentage points ahead of the Liberals. Over the campaign the Tory lead began to shrink as the Liberals waged a highly effective campaign. Part way into the campaign, the separate schools question re-emerged when the Anglican prelate of Toronto, Archbishop Lewis Garnsworthy, held a news conference on the issue where he compared Bill Davis' methods in pushing through the reform to Adolf Hitler: "This is how Hitler changed education in Germany, by exactly the same process, by decree. I won't take that back.". Garnsworthy was much criticized for his remarks, but the issue was revived, alienating the conservative base, some of whom chose to stay home on election day.
The election held May 2, 1985 ended in a stalemate. The PCs emerged with a much-reduced caucus of 52 seats. The Liberals won 48 seats, but won slightly more of the popular vote. The NDP held the balance of power with 25 seats.
Despite taking 14 seats from the PCs, the result was something of a disappointment for the Liberals, as they felt they had their first realistic chance of winning government in recent memory. The NDP was also disappointed by the election result. It had been nearly tied with the Liberals for popular support for several years, and had hoped to surpass them.

Post-Election

The PCs intended to remain in power with a minority government, as they had done on two occasions under Davis' leadership. Rae and the NDP had little interest in supporting a continuation of PC rule, and began negotiations on May 13 to reach an agreement with the Liberals. Rae and Peterson signed an Accord May 29 that would see a number of NDP priorities put into law in exchange for an NDP motion of non-confidence in Miller's government, and the NDP's support of the Liberals. The NDP agreed to support a Liberal minority government for two years, and the Liberals agreed not to call an election during that time.
Miller, apprised of negotiations, considered a plan to address the province on television two days before the throne speech, disown funding for Catholic schools, and announce he was meeting with the Lieutenant Governor to request an election before a confidence vote could take place. While believing that the Lieutenant Governor would have to call an election if requested before the confidence vote, Miller refused, believing the party's finances to be too fragile for a second campaign, and that repudiating a key Davis policy would tear the party apart.
On June 18, 1985, the PCs were defeated by the passage of a motion of no confidence introduced by Rae. Lieutenant-Governor John Black Aird then asked Peterson to form a government. Miller resigned eight days later, and Peterson's minority government was sworn in the same day.

Results

The Revolutionary Workers League fielded one candidate.

Riding results

Algoma—Manitoulin:
Armourdale:
Beaches—Woodbine:
Bellwoods:
Brampton:
Brantford:
Brant—Oxford—Haldimand:
Brock:
Burlington South:
Cambridge:
Carleton:
Carleton East:
Carleton-Grenville:
Chatham—Kent:
Cochrane North:
Cochrane South:
Cornwall:
Don Mills:
Dovercourt:
Downsview:
Dufferin—Simcoe:
Durham East:
Durham West:
Durham—York:
Eglinton:
Elgin:
Erie:
Essex North:
Essex South:
Etobicoke:
Fort William:
Frontenac—Addington:
Grey:
Grey—Bruce:
Haldimand—Norfolk:
Halton—Burlington:
Hamilton Centre:
Hamilton East:
Hamilton Mountain:
Hamilton West:
Hastings—Peterborough:
High Park—Swansea:
Humber:
Huron—Bruce:
Huron—Middlesex:
Kenora:
Kent—Elgin:
Kingston and the Islands:
Kitchener:
Kitchener—Wilmot:
Lake Nipigon:
Lambton:
Lanark—Renfrew:
Lakeshore:
Leeds:
Lincoln:
London Centre:
London North:
London South:
Middlesex:
Mississauga East:
Mississauga North:
Mississauga South:
Muskoka:
Niagara Falls:
Nickel Belt:
Nipissing:
Northumberland:
Oakville:
Oakwood:
Oriole:
Oshawa:
Ottawa Centre:
Ottawa East:
Ottawa South:
Ottawa West:
Oxford:
Parkdale:
Parry Sound:
Perth:
Peterborough:
Port Arthur:
Prescott and Russell:
Prince Edward—Lennox:
Quinte:
Rainy River:
Renfrew North:
Renfrew South:
Riverdale:
St. Andrew—St. Patrick:
St. Catharines:
St. David:
St. George:
Sarnia:
Sault Ste. Marie:
Scarborough Centre:
Scarborough East:
Scarborough—Ellesmere:
Scarborough North:
Scarborough West:
Simcoe Centre:
Simcoe East:
Stormont—Dundas—Glengarry & East Grenville:
Sudbury:
Sudbury East:
Timiskaming:
Victoria—Haliburton:
Waterloo North:
Welland—Thorold:
Wellington—Dufferin—Peel:
Wellington South:
Wentworth:
Wentworth North:
Wilson Heights:
Windsor—Riverside:
Windsor—Sandwich:
Windsor—Walkerville:
York Centre:
York East:
York Mills:
York North:
York South:
York West:
Yorkview:
, April 17, 1986:
Cochrane North, August 14, 1986:
David Ramsay, elected as a New Democrat, joined the Liberal Party on October 6, 1986. Tony Lupusella, also elected as a New Democrat, joined the Liberal Party on December 17, 1986. After Lupusella's defection, the Liberals held as many seats in the legislative assembly as the Progressive Conservatives, at 51,.
Paul Yakabuski, PC MPP for Renfrew South died July 31, 1987