Ford's got a shot at majority, Del Duca's got runner-up
Plus: Barrett benched, breaking up with unions, costed platforms (or not), major candidate milestones, handgun blowback
ABOVE THE FOLD
POLL WATCH — Premier DOUG FORD is on track to form government when Ontarians go to the polls on June 2.
That’s the upshot from a pair of fresh public-opinion surveys, which are also in line with a recent string of polls that suggest the PCs are well ahead of their political rivals and wading into majority territory.
First up — this morning, Abacus Data will release its first poll of campaign season. Spoiler alert: It pegs support for the PCs at 37 per cent. Context: Ford swept a majority at Queen’s Park in 2018 with about 40 per cent of the vote.
While the Official Opposition NDP and decimated Liberals have jockeyed for second place in recent polls, Abacus puts the Grits on top by a long shot — STEVEN DEL DUCA’s party turned up 26 per cent support while ANDREA HORWATH’s New Democrats got a paltry 12 per cent.
The kicker: A whopping 24 per cent of respondents say they’re unsure about the next electoral victor.
Ford’s Tories also came out on top in another su…