From October 10 to October 13 and from October 17 to October 20, 2025, we surveyed Ontarians on their provincial and municipal governments.
Key highlights include...
Direction of the Province: Only a third of residents (33%) believe Ontario is headed in the right direction with just 3% indicating it is going strongly in the right direction. In contrast, half of Ontarians (55%) believe it is on the wrong track, a 4-point increase since the last wave.
- Optimism is higher among men, as well as younger and older adults, while middle-aged Ontarians are the most pessimistic. Regionally, those in the East have softer positive sentiments than those in the rest of the province.
Top Issues for Ontarians: Housing prices/affordability remains the dominant issue for Ontarians, particularly among those aged 18-54. Healthcare is the next most pressing concern, especially among Ontarians aged 55+, though concern has dropped 3-points slightly since the previous wave.
- Older Ontarians 55+ are more likely to express concerned about USA tariffs, trade sanctions, and Trump. Regionally, those in the North are more concerned about Inflation or rising interest rates than the rest of the province.
Approval of Provincial Party Leaders: Public approval of Ontario’s political leaders remains mixed. Premier Doug Ford receives approval from 45% rating from Ontarians, compared to 30% for NDP Leader Marit Stiles and 29% for Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie whose approval dropped 4-points since the last wave. While most say their opinions of the leaders are unchanged from six months ago, across the board, significantly more are likely to say their opinions have worsened than improved.
- Relatively, Premier Ford’s approval (45%) mirrors that of BC Premier David Eby (47%) and surpasses that of Alberta’s Danielle Smith (38%). The proportion of Ontarians who say their opinion of Ford has worsened is on par with that of residents of BC who say the same of Eby (32% and 30%, respectively), less than that of Albertans who say the same of Smith (47%).
Doug Ford and Progressive Conservative Party Performance: When evaluating government performance, Ontarians rate the Ford government most positively on managing relations with the federal government (47%) and preparing for U.S. tariffs and trade sanctions (45%). However, they give notably poor ratings for handling housing affordability (68% bad job), poverty (62% bad job), homelessness (65% bad job) and Healthcare (61% bad).
Provincial Policy Issues: Ontarians show strong support for prioritizing the maintenance and improvement of existing infrastructure before launching new projects, with 79% agreeing the province should focus on roads and transit upkeep first. Half (49%) support granting the provincial government authority to override local zoning and environmental rules to accelerate major housing or transit projects, while only 36% favour relying more on private-sector partnerships that may raise long-term costs.
Seven-in-ten (71%) support freezing rent increases for one year in municipalities where rents are rising more than 5% annually, even if it slows new housing construction. Approximately two-thirds (64%) agree that cities should only clear homeless encampments if alternative housing or shelter is available. Most Ontarians (61%) think the province, not municipalities, should lead efforts to address homelessness and encampments. Fewer (38%) believe people experiencing homelessness should be allowed to camp in public spaces when shelters are full.
- Men are more likely to agree that the province should rely more on private-sector partnerships to build major infrastructure, that the government is doing enough to help people cope with rising living costs, and that investing in new Ontario-based energy projects is worthwhile even if it results in higher short-term electricity rates.
Methodology
The results for this wave of research are based on online research conducted from October 10 to October 13 and from October 17 to October 20, 2025, with a representative sample of 1,052 Canadian adults 18 years of age and older from Leger’s LEO panel.
A margin of error cannot be associated with a non-probability sample in a panel survey, but for comparison purposes, a probability sample of 1,052 would have a margin of error of +/- 3.0%, 19 times out of 20.
