By Pepper Parr
February 12th, 2026
BURLINGTON, ON
OPINION
Nathan Erskine Smith(Nate) is on his way to his next political adventure.
He is determined to become a significant political figure – becoming Premier of Ontario suits him just fine.
And goodness knows, Ontario desperately needs a new Premier. Doug Ford has boasted that he can and will run for a fourth term of office.
Is Nate the man to beat Doug?
And should he manage to do that, what kind of a Premier would he become?
His political path up to this point has been bumpy.
He was Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities in former Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus cabinet.
He was Minister of Housing under the first government Mark Carney formed, but less than a year later, Nate was out.
Not much in the way of cabinet-level experience.
Nate has found a path that could get him to the point where he becomes the leader of the provincial Liberal Party.
When he held an online organizational meeting of the people who believed in him Wednesday night, he got, a surprise to him, 400 people who were ready to first make him the Liberal candidate for Scarborough West and then work to make him leader of the party and then campaign across the province to make him Premier of the province in the next provincial election.
Doug Ford is not going to make it easy for him.
Is Nathan Erskine Smith a great campaigner – not particularly.
Is he a nice guy – certainly believes he can make a difference.
Nate Erskine Smith speaking to Burlington Liberals. Lisa Mayeski does the intro.
What Ontario doesn’t know is – what kind of Ontario would he deliver?
The province is in a mess. Setting aside all the scandal that surrounds Doug Ford, and that is a stretch, there are very serious problems in every sector. The automotive sector is being decimated, health is in a shambles, education isn’t getting the financial support it needs.
Housing is not being built, workers are being laid off by the thousands and few people have any money to spend. Those who do have income that is disposable are keeping it in their bank accounts.
But the current Premier is able to sign a contract with an Austrian company to completely redesign Ontario Place and make it a carnival.
Nathan Erskine Smith speaking in the House of Commons
He killed the Science Centre.
All the public get to see is a man who comes up with one loopy idea after another. The tunnel beneath Highway 401 is something he is still spending money on; all while he awaits the delivery of an RCMP report on whether or not criminal charges can be laid on his scandals.
The Ford family created Ford Nation, which the majority of people in the province are prepared to live with.
The creation of Team Nate is the first step in creating the kind of momentum that leads to winning election campaigns.
What Ontario needs is a leader with the ideas and at least some charisma to catch the public’s attention at a time when nothing seems to be going right.
Is Nathan Erskine Smith that person?
Related news story:
Nate speaks to 400 people who are on his Team
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Simply put…No.
WHO?????
Excellent critique of the awful Ford government. That said, we have an articulate, hard-working and competent Opposition Leader in New Democrat Marit Stiles. Ontario would be well-served with a two-party electoral showdown between the PCs and the NDPs, reducing the risk of disastrous opposition vote splitting. Why do people keep talking about the missing in action, for what will be an extended period this year, Ontario Liberals? Erskine-Smith would be a controversial choice as leader to say the least.