

On The Ledge - your Ontario politics podcast
Dave Trafford and iContact Productions
The Ledge, n: slang for the legislature. Mostly used by members of the legislative press gallery. On the Ledge posts weekly when the Ontario Legislature is sitting. But there have been times when we've had to "recall" the Ledge for an emergency session to address pressing matters of Ontario politics when Queen's Park isn't sitting!Our OTL team includes former Ontario Premier, Kathleen Wynne, former Progressive Conservative Leader, (and Wynne's erstwhile parliamentary sparring partner), Tim Hudak, Queen's Park broadcast commentator Keith Leslie, John Wright, our veteran pollster and co-founding host, and Dave Trafford, Chief Executive Producer at Story Studio Network.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jun 2, 2018 • 21min
The Writ Race June 3, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 26:It's the first day of full campaigning following Kathleen Wynne's unprecedented election tactic - conceding that she as the incumbent Premier of the province will not form the next government in Ontario. In this episode, we're joined by Bob Richardson, Senior Counsel, National Public Relations, Tim Hudak, former leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party and John Wright. I spoke to all three earlier today during my Morning Radio Show on Newstalk 1010 in Toronto.You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.

Jun 2, 2018 • 15min
The Writ Race June 2, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 25: Okay! Nobody saw that coming. Liberal leaders Kathleen Wynne admits her party's not going to win the June 7 election and the best she can hope is that voters will elect a handful of Liberals to keep the new government, under Doug Ford or Andrea Horwath, in check. It ranks as the earliest concession speech in Ontario election history! How will it change the dynamic in a very close two horse race?You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.

Jun 2, 2018 • 15min
The Writ Race June 1, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 24: June 1st marks the beginning of Pride Month in Toronto yet, Doug Ford seems un-prepared when asked whether he will march in the Pride Parade at the end of the month. It could be a problem for him OR a decided strategy by his campaign team to keep him buttoned down and away from media scrutiny. The Ford team cancelled his appearance on the Leaders' interview segment scheduled for Monday night on CP24. Andrea Horwath is speaking directly to Liberal voters in Kathleen Wynne's riding saying it's time for everyone to acknowledge that the Liberals are not going to form government. Horwath uses the opportunity to appeal to Liberals to vote NDP to stop Ford and the PCs.You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.

May 31, 2018 • 18min
The Writ Race May 31, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 23:One week until ELECTION DAY in Ontario and the only thing that appears clear is that the Liberals are highly unlikely to extend their 15 years in office at Queen's Park. This is a campaign that has essentially be driven by two things: 1) Personalities and 2) Polls. The Personalities of the leaders has proven problematic. While Andrea Horwath of the NDP may have the highest likeability rating among the top three party leaders, 74% of Ontario voters are unimpressed with their choices for Premier. Polling has dominated the headlines and the pollsters have come under more scrutiny than the party platforms or any issues facing the province.You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.

May 31, 2018 • 16min
The Writ Race May 30, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 22: No sooner did we sign off from our last episode wondering aloud if or when Doug Ford's PCs would release a "plan" that resembled a platform than the party hit the send button on a package of promises. We've heard most of it. Some of it has numbers attached. But there's no indication of how the Tories will pay for the plan. Do people care? Probably not beyond political geeks and media types. The PCs have taken a turn for the negative though in their radio ads targeting the NDP apparently trying to stem any tide of momentum Andrea Horwath and her party are gaining as we head in to the final week of the campaign.You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.

May 30, 2018 • 17min
The Writ Race May 29, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 21: A tentative day on the hustings in Ontario. None of the major parties has made any aggressive post-debate move to shore up about a third of the likely voters who haven't yet settled on a choice. Social media and conventional media discussion today still reflects a stat in an earlier Ipsos poll that suggests 3 out of 4 voters aren't impressed with any of the major party leaders. So how will the Tories change the general perception that they're losing momentum? What will it take to make 'the middle' move? Can the 'left' coalesce around Andrea Horwath's New Democrats? Can the NDP get their vote out? Will disaffected Liberal supporters simply not show up on election day? You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.

May 29, 2018 • 20min
The Writ Race May 28, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 20: It was feisty, it was frustrating, if not infuriating if you were hoping for some real debate and discussion of the issues facing the province. The Ontario Leaders' Debate was highlighted by hyperbole and histrionics. The format only served to reinforce the notion that politics is driven by petty one liners and bumper sticker messaging. The media consortium created a framework designed to squeeze as much as possible into 90 minutes rather than squeezing as much as possible out of 90 minutes. The polling in the coming days will tell the tale, but count on them continuing to show real ambivalence among Ontario's electorate because the debate did next to nothing to clarify or solidify the voting intentions of nearly a third of those who intend to cast a ballot on June 7.You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.

May 27, 2018 • 25min
The Writ Race May 27, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 19: This is a special edition of The Writ Race, featuring pre-debate analysis from John Wright, Tony Chapman of Tony Chapman Reactions, and Tim Hudak, the former leader of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party. I had the opportunity to talk to all three on my morning radio show on Newstalk1010 in Toronto today.You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.

May 26, 2018 • 21min
The Writ Race May 26, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 18: How are the media managing their coverage of Ontario Election 2018? We sit down with two newsroom managers to talk about the challenges and opportunities to tell the story of this historic campaign. Kym Geddes is the News Director at Newstalk 1010 in Toronto. Tim Richards is the Managing Editor of CBC Toronto.You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.

May 25, 2018 • 16min
The Writ Race - Part 2 - May 25, 2018
Thirty days. Thirty podcasts! Dave Trafford, Executive Producer of iContact Productions and John Wright, CEO - Insight of Dart Insight and Communications take a daily swipe at the Ontario campaign until election day on June 7th. They chase the race and follow the leaders. What should you expect? What didn't you expect in this campaign? DAY 17: Three polls hit the media today and each of them suggests the NDP is making gains at the expense of Liberals and PCs. But a deeper dive on the numbers based on CBC reporting says the New Democrats may be well ahead in popular vote but seat projections indicate that Tories would still win a majority. So, this weekend is going to be important for Andrea Horwath and Doug Ford as they prepare for the Leaders' Debate on Sunday evening. You can watch OR listen to this episode on our YouTube Channel (Be sure to subscribe!)Follow Dave on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and XAnd you can leave us a voice comment here!For more information go to Dave's website.


