'It's about fixing things': Who is the Ontario NDP Leader?

Andrea Horwath has spent more than 10 years at the helm of the Ontario NDP, managing to propel the party into a position of power as the official opposition during the last provincial election.

It’s a form of momentum the party leader hopes she can maintain come June by combating the Progressive Conservative’s “building” theme with one of her own—fixing what’s broken.

Horwath ventured into public service in 1997 as a city councillor in her hometown of Hamilton before being elected as MPP in 2004. She credits the PC Mike Harris government for inspiring her to run, saying she knew that in order to make a difference, she needed a seat at the table.

Eighteen years later and she still feels that need to be at the table—or rather, at the head of it.

The campaign began for the NDP last month, weeks before the writ was issued and the formal election period had been declared. Standing at Evergreen Brickworks in Toronto surrounded by a sea of orange signs, Horwath announced a plan for universal mental health coverage, introducing their new “working for you” slogan in front of a large crowd of spectators.

Hours after launching her election platform in late April, Horwath sat down with CTV News Toronto to talk about her priorities, what the future of the NDP could entail, and what her pandemic pastime was.

This is what the party leader had to say.

Q: I know you just released your platform today, which had a lot in it, so I'm going to start this interview by asking you to narrow things down a little bit. If you had to pick, what is your number one issue on the campaign trail?

"What I'm hearing from people is their number one issue is affordability. Folks are really having a hard time making ends meet, the cost of everything is going up—housing and gasoline and rent. It's gotten quite scary for folks. That's what I'm hearing from them and so that's therefore a priority for me."

Q: I know that leading up to the writ being drawn, the NDP focused a lot on healthcare. You introduced universal mental health coverage and free birth control. Why did you decide to lean into those elements of your platform early on?

"Because I think that's the other thing that is on top of people's minds, particularly when we saw what COVID showed us. Frankly, there's a lot that's broken in our health-care system. There's been a number of governments that have continued to make things worse and not better, and COVID showed us that we really need to take care of some of the fundamentals, fix some of these broken things, and make sure people feel confident in their health-care system once again. And we know that there are parts of our health-care system that have never really been there for people. And that's why we talked about the mental health piece significantly, because COVID, I think, put a lot of stress on folks."

Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath waves from her campaign bus as she announces her party’s northern platform at Bell Park in Sudbury, Ont., Monday, May 9, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Gino Donato

"We've never really taken mental health pain seriously, although it causes as much problem for people as physical health pain does. And so mental health is a piece that we just thought it was time we start ensuring people can get the therapies and the counseling that they need, that it's available for them and that they don't have to worry about paying—that they can use their OHIP card, as opposed to their credit card, to get the help they need."

Q: How will the NDP and you as premier, if you were elected in June, lead Ontario out of the pandemic?

"Cautiously and thoughtfully is the way I think that we need to go. We've always listened to the science, we've always listened to the experts, but we also have to commit to investing in supporting people and getting them through these next number of months, and making sure that we're protecting their health and well being as well as their financial health and well being. So that's why we have a platform that really speaks to all of those things."

• MORE: Top 5 things to know about the NDP platform

"It's both being ready for what's coming next, but being prepared to spend the money. For example, keeping our classrooms safe and reducing classroom sizes was another thing that we should have been investing in, but unfortunately, that wasn't the choice that the current government made. We're going to put people at the top of our response to COVID-19 if it happens to go somewhere we don't want it to go, because that's what people deserve. They deserve their government to be there supporting them through the hard times."

Q: Currently, you are the only major party leader who is a woman and I know that previously you have been the target of some passive aggressive sexism in the legislature. I'm wondering if you still find yourself having to respond to gender specific commentary while on the campaign trail or even at Queen's Park?

"I would say yes, I do. And I think most women do, frankly, in their professions and in their lives. Women are still faced with sexism, and they're still faced with language and actions that are inappropriate and gender based. That’s still something that we are still struggling against. Every time it happens to me, I think—well, first of all, I get disappointed because it continues to happen—but I think to myself, I'm not the only woman that experiences this. But by having a leadership role, by taking those kinds of things on when they occur, it helps to, I think, shore up other women, but also acknowledge that we have to keep fighting these battles if our daughters and our granddaughters are perhaps at some point in the future going to be able to be free from them."

Q: You’ve been the leader of the NDP for over 10 years now. Obviously, you hope that in June you're elected as Premier. If the results aren't exactly what you hope, is your plan to remain as leader?

"Well, that's always the decision that gets made when that bridge approaches. At this point, my focus is on ensuring Ontarians that we can tackle the things that matter most to them, that we can fix the things that are broken."

"That's my job from now until Election Day. And I'm certainly hoping that come election day, we'll get the chance to actually fix the things that other governments have been breaking for some time."

Q: The ideologies of the NDP and the Liberals align pretty closely aligned. What are the key differences that you think voters should know?

"Well, I think we've all watched as the Liberals did things last time around when they had 15 years to fix the challenges people are facing, they do the opposite. So they brought us hallway medicine, they sold off Hydro One, they continued to make life more difficult for people. They didn't fix the housing crisis that was starting under them. They walked away from it. So they like to talk about these things, I think, during campaigns, but the difference between us and them is we will fix them. We've got a plan that will fix the health-care system that they broke, that will help people to get through life in a more affordable way. That will make sure that we're not selling off public assets for a one time financial gain while our hydro rates go through the roof. That's really what it's all about. It's about fixing these things instead of just talking about them."

Q: Four years ago, the NDP were able to surge past the liberals to become the official opposition, the closest your party has been to being in power since 1995. What does your party have to do to really push to the front this time around?

"Well, when we talk about the things that you and I have been just talking about, I think the most important thing that people need to know is that that we can fix them now. We can't wait another four years. The most important job is to defeat Doug Ford … This time, the NDP is going into this campaign with 40 seats. The Liberals have seven. This time we have to come together behind the team that has a chance at defeating Doug Ford. And that would be the official opposition: the NDP."

Q: I know on a federal level, the liberals and the NDP came to an agreement to kind of push through much needed legislation. Is that on the table right now, for the provincial NDP and Liberals?

"Well, right now what our job is, it’s to defeat Doug Ford and that's where I'm going to stay focused. When people make their decision on election day, what I can guarantee is that I will come to Queen's Park each and every day, with my sleeves rolled up ready to get to work for them, and then make the changes and you address the problems, the concerns, the things that are broken, that that people want to see fixed."

Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath makes an announcement during a rally in Toronto, on Sunday, April 3, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

Q: If your party is elected, what do you think your biggest challenge is going to be?

"Well, I think the challenge will be looking around at what's been problematic for so long, what's been broken by the Conservatives … they've done a lot of damage. And the challenge is going to be making sure that we are able to identify all of the things that they've taken us backwards on and begin to push forward again."

WHO IS ANDREA HORWATH?

Q: What made you interested in running for office?

"It was the (Mike) Harris government. I was in the City of Hamilton at the time, I was doing local community work and I just saw the last Conservative government start tearing down the things that matter most to people, things like affordable housing, things like privatization of services, amalgamations and I just realized that I could continue to work at the community level to try to advocate for what I think is what people need, but really being at the table is the best way to do that."

"That's why I got involved in municipal politics, because of the downloading and the cuts of the Harris government."

Q: Name one thing that you love about your riding.

"The people. I have such a fantastic riding. It’s so diverse. There are people from every walk of life, from every income level, from every part of the world, that live in my riding and it's just so animated and so fantastic, and it's the people that make those spaces in my community, whether it's the waterfront, whether it's the central business districts, whether it's the escarpment and the walking paths—It's a pretty amazing place and the people make it even more amazing."

Q: Outside of your riding, where's your favorite place to visit in Ontario?

"Now, you know, this is a dangerous question (to ask) a politician, as if I name another community other than “The Hammer”—my own—people (will) say what about our community. But you know what, one of the privileges I've had as the leader of the Ontario NDP is to be able to visit so many fantastic places …it’s just a beautiful, beautiful province and there are just so many fantastic places to see and explore. And again, I really do feel privileged that I've had that opportunity."

Q: During COVID, what was your pandemic pastime?

"It was baking bread like so many others. It was making bread and unfortunately, you know, nobody can resist a nice warm loaf of bread out of the oven. So that was a problem."

Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath talks to construction workers as she makes an announcement, in Bowmanville, Ont., Saturday, May 7, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

Q: What was the last book you read or TV show that you've enjoyed?

"Well, I'm actually reading right now Sarah Polley's latest book “Run Towards The Danger.” And it’s quite something else. She's an amazing woman as we all know. TV shows, my go-to TV show is Jeopardy. I watch Jeopardy every chance I get. I just love it."

Q: What's your go to caffeinated beverage or must have snack while on the campaign trail?

"Caffeinated beverages: cappuccino. I have to say it's my favorite. Snack: almonds. In fact, I have some on my desk right now. They're a healthy snack that gets you through the day."

Q: And finally in in one sentence or two, why should people vote NDP?

"If people want to see the kind of change that makes their lives better, that helps them to afford to build a great life here for themselves and their families, if they want to see the things that they rely on, that had been broken in years gone by under provincial leaders like the Conservative leader now Doug Ford, and sadly, the Liberal government before them, that's what the NDP is all about. We're here to fix the things that matter most to you. So you and your family can get back on solid ground."

This profile is one of a three-part series spotlighting Ontario's main party leaders. CTV News Toronto reached out to Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford on multiple occasions, but his party declined an interview request. Responses have been edited for clarity and concision.