No Southwestern Ontario ridings safe to call one week out from election: expert

There's one week to go until the next leader of the country is elected and one political analyst says no ridings in Windsor-Essex are safe to call at this point.

According to University of Windsor political science professor Lydia Miljan, the local campaigns have mimicked the national campaigns for the most part.

"The NDP were really on the back foot, despite the fact that all three ridings had NDP incumbents," said Miljan. "The national numbers seemed to make them vulnerable, [but] the NDP leader has done quite well in debates."

Jagmeet Singh's performance has probably given the local NDP incumbents a "little bit more confidence" that they can hold onto their seats, she said.

In Windsor-West, Miljan said the riding's race is "exceeding expectations."

"It really shows the nastiness of the national campaign coming into the local race," Miljan said . "It's a very personal campaign. The attacks by Sandra Pupatello are quite interesting."

The nature of a rural riding

Miljan said Essex is different than Windsor-West or Windsor-Tecumseh because the Conservatives are competitive with the NDP.

"It really reflects the nature of a rural riding," said Miljan. "There are a lot more social conservatives in rural areas which really gives a boost to the Conservatives. At least in Essex it's not about the individual candidate, it's about whether or not there is party support for the national team."

Miljan said it will come down to who is going to have the better "ground game."

"Who is going to be able to mobilize the voters to actually go to the polls and cast their ballot?"