The topic of abortion will not be a heavy issue for the Progressive Conservative Party aiming to win the local elections in Ontario at the beginning of next month.

After the uproar it caused across the country early this week, over the leak of a document from the U.S. Supreme Court about the possibility of American women losing their legal right to abortion, Ontario’s outgoing premier Doug Ford confirmed that he will not restrict abortion rights if re-elected on June 2nd.

Meanwhile, his political opponents, who are leaders of the Liberal Party, Green Party, and New Democratic Party, said they would facilitate women’s access to the right to abortion in Ontario.

The leaders of the four main parties campaigning in Ontario faced questions on this issue following a leak about the possibility that the U.S. Supreme Court might overturn the ruling known as "Roe v. Wade," which has protected the right to abortion in America for 50 years.

Doug Ford (new window) explained that he prefers the status quo, where Canadian law does not criminalize abortion.

Ford also refused yesterday, on the first official day of the election campaign in Ontario, to specify whether he would tolerate pro-life voices within his party’s ranks.

It is worth noting that in 2019, three members of the Progressive Conservative Party participated in an anti-abortion march at Queens Park in downtown Toronto.

For her part, the leader of the official opposition party (new window) in the Ontario parliament, head of the New Democratic Party Andrea Horwath, pledged to increase access to abortion in rural and northern communities by providing more resources if her party is elected to lead the province on June 2nd.

The New Democratic leader insists that "any woman, anyone who needs an abortion, should have the right to access it without worry, problems, or delays in waiting periods that might prevent her from having a safe procedure."

For his part, Liberal Party leader Steven Del Duca also pledged to facilitate access to abortion in areas where this service is unavailable or limited. This is part of the women’s healthcare program for which the party will allocate a budget of $15 million. Del Duca noted that the right to abortion cannot be considered an acquired right.

Meanwhile, Green Party leader Mike Schreiner pledged to increase the number of women’s health service centers, including abortion clinics, if elected on June 2nd.