Ontario's political parties have been preparing for months for the possibility of an early election, but next week’s snap election call has pushed planning to a fever pitch.

Ontario’s premier is calling an early election, saying his government needs a fresh mandate to help Canada’s fight against potential tariffs from US President Donald Trump.

The leader of Canada’s most populous province says he will be calling an election in Ontario because he says he needs a mandate to fight U.S.

TORONTO — Premier Doug Ford plans to call a snap election next Wednesday and send Ontarians to the polls on Feb. 27, The Canadian Press reported Thursday. Two senior government sources said Ford recently made the decision for the rare winter election after waffling for months.

But opposition politicians, including local MPP Lisa Gretzky (NDP — Windsor West) criticized the snap election call as a needless distraction. They argue Ford, who already holds a majority at Queen’s Park, does not need another mandate from Ontarians to address Trump’s threatened steep tariffs on all Canadian exports.