One year later

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Today marks one year since 2025’s snap election in which DOUG FORD and the PCs clinched a rare third majority mandate.

Since then, the Premier’s personal approval seems to have taken a hit in public-opinion polling.

While some are skeptical about the latest Liaison Strategies poll that suggests the ruling Tories are virtually neck-and-neck with the leaderless Liberals, even Ford Nation insiders concede he may not be as popular now as he was last February. It’s something Abacus Data pollster DAVID COLETTO has called “a building undercurrent of restlessness” among the electorate.

Ford, for his part, dismissed his softer polling numbers this week. But one theory floating around out there is that the recent onslaught of self-congratulatory ads running across TV, radio and social media could be an attempt at damage control.

Not helping: The government has seen loads of staff turnover since last spring, most notably the veteran operatives in the Premier’s Office who have been …