Three Ontario political parties have now released election ads. Here’s what they say

With an election in Ontario just weeks away, party leaders are showering voters with artfully crafted advertisements designed to engage new supporters and reach out to their bases. Some pull on heartstrings, others throw jagged jabs at opponents that cost millions of dollars.

Ontario’s NDP confirmed to CTV News Toronto that the party is forking out roughly $12 to $13 million – nearly double their spending in the 2018 election – on their campaign this year.

“This is by far the most the Ontario NDP has ever spent on a campaign,” a NDP spokesperson said. “It’s thanks to very strong fundraising numbers.”

Meanwhile, on Thursday, Ontario’s Liberal Leader Steven Del Duca revealed his first ad, featuring a deeply personal and emotional appeal to voters.

In a 60-second video, titled “Resilience,” Del Duca talks about the devastating loss of his younger brother Michael who died in a car accident.

“I had coffee with him that morning and that was the last time I saw him alive,” Del Duca says, sitting at a kitchen counter, holding a childhood image of his late brother.

While Del Duca said it’s impossible to heal the wound of that loss, the message pivots to hone in on resilience.

“You have to find a way to be resilient enough in the face of adversity. You need to just put one foot in front of the other. When I think about how tough COVID has been over the last couple of years, it’s so important for us to lean on one another.”

Del Duca’s appeal starkly contrasts the advertisements of his opponents, who have taken a more combative route in their messaging.

Ontario NDP Leader Andrea Horwath’s works to differentiate herself from the Liberals and Progressive Conservatives in a pair of ads released on Wednesday. One tells her family story in 30-seconds.

“My dad was an auto worker. Mom cleaned schools at night. I learned about hard work from them,” she narrates.

The second positions the PCs and Liberals battling in a game of ping pong with words like, “Health Care in Crisis” and “Sky-High Housing Costs” wedged between them.

At the end, a swath of orange balls fall onto the table and Horwath appears, picking one up and saying, “It’s your turn to win.”

In response, Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford pushed back against Horwath with a direct attack on the NDP. “Andrea Horwath and the NDP continue to be the party of no and negativity with their new platform,” the party wrote in a tweet on Wednesday.

His response further hones in on his campaign’s “Get it done” motto, which appears in ads where Ford is depicted in a montage – wearing a hard hat, shaking hands with workers on the job at construction sites or hospitals, and in some cases, embracing them.

While the three parties have dived into their campaigns with full force, the provincial election has not yet been officially called. But, with an election slated for June 2, they have mere weeks to convey their messages to voters.