While Premier Doug Ford insists that U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff threat is why he's calling an election 15 months ahead of schedule, there are plenty of reasons why the timing is politically advantageous to Ford and his Ontario PC Party.

But that also carries risks. In 1990, voters punished Liberal premier David Peterson, also enjoying a majority government, who called an early election with a recession looming, Wiseman noted. Peterson lost badly. “I think a lot of people felt a bit uneasy about how things were going to turn out economically,” Wiseman said.

Officials across the country were watching to see if Trump imposed tariffs on Canada in his first day on the job.