Orillia Mayor Don McIsaac has publicly endorsed Doug Ford and his Progressive Conservative (PC) government in the days leading up to Thursday's provincial election.
His endorsement was posted on Simcoe North MPP Jill Dunlop's social media accounts Feb. 21. At the top of the posts, she wrote, "Thank you, Mayor Don McIsaac."
McIsaac's endorsement reads, in part, "The Ford government's unprecedented investments in Ontario's mental health services, addiction recovery, homelessness prevention, as well as our local hospital, are evident of the great value to this community. Through Jill Dunlop's advocacy, Premier Ford supported our water tower project, which will enable the addition of more than 3,500 new homes and help us build a stronger, more resilient community."
"I urge all of you to join me and support Premier Ford and his government to give him the mandate he needs to keep Ontario strong, prosperous and a place we all want to live."
— Jill Dunlop (@JillDunlop1) February 21, 2025
Thank you, Mayor Don McIsaac! pic.twitter.com/jV7Ep3p9Cp
The last paragraph urges people to support Premier Doug Ford "and his government to give him the mandate he needs to keep Ontario strong, prosperous and a place we all want to live."
The social media post is accompanied by a photo of McIsaac standing beside Dunlop.
Despite his endorsement, McIsaac would not answer questions from OrilliaMatters, an affiliate of BradfordToday and InnisfilToday, about why he chose to publicly support Ford. In response to numerous questions, he said, "No comment."
However, his public endorsement drew harsh criticism on social media.
Krista Holmes-Storey commented on a Facebook post, saying, "As an individual, Don McIsaac can support whoever he wants ... Members of council must remain non-partisan when representing the municipality. I am quite surprised that neither of you (McIsaac and Dunlop) seem to realize this."
Ellen Cohen wrote, "I don't believe I've ever seen an Orillia mayor endorse a political candidate. Yes, we usually understand the party every mayor supports but municipal politics is non-partisan, correct? I am puzzled by this endorsement."
Marilyn Rolland shared the post, adding, "It appears our politicians have become emboldened in their power status and they feel they can publicly state who they are backing politically without having to deal with any consequences. So it is up to the voting public to state how they feel about this and do they agree or disagree with it."
Joe Cornelisse, on his Facebook page, said, "Don McIsaac won't get my vote again since he has endorsed #photoopdunlop."
McIsaac is not the only mayor in Simcoe County to publicly endorse Ford.
Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall was the first to do so on Jan. 30, saying, "Premier Ford is an incredible partner for Barrie."
Andrea Khanjin, PC MPP for Barrie-Innisfil, posted it to her Instagram account, adding, "I appreciate Mayor @alexfrombarrie support of @ontariopc and our plan to protect the jobs and businesses of local Barrie residents."
Midland Mayor Bill Gordon has also endorsed the Ford government. His post on Instagram's @ontariopc states, "At a time when Ontario and Canada are facing dire threats to our economy and sovereignty, it's never been more important to give this provincial government a clear and unified mandate to protect Ontario. Now is not the time to hand over to an untested and inexperience leader ... Doug Ford and his Ontario PC team have my strong endorsement as they work to protect Ontario and stand up against the threats of annexation from President Trump."
Bradford West Gwillimbury Mayor James Leduc also endorsed the PCs, as have some other mayors in the province, including Patrick Brown, the mayor of Brampton, who served briefly as MPP of Simcoe North.