Canada's National Observer

Olivia Chow has won the Toronto mayoral race.

Well that picked up fast! Olivia Chow is reelected as mayor of Toronto.

Hello Toronto!! Election night!! I am here at Olivia Chow HQ, results are starting to roll in.

👋 From Brad Bradford HQ waiting for Toronto’s election results to roll in! @nationalobserver.com

It's election night in Toronto! We have reporters @cloelogan.bsky.social and @emmersonj.bsky.social on the ground at Chow and Bradford HQ. Polls closed at 8 pm ET, but no results yet. Stay tuned.

From housing to harm reduction, here are the issues on young Torontonians’ minds.

A week after the fatal fire at CFB Wainwright, officials are still tight-lipped about the specifics of what claimed the lives of four Canadian Armed Forces members. But the incident raises questions about whether military protocols are keeping pace with a changing climate.

New: Fire experts @johnvaillant.bsky.social and @mikeflannigan.bsky.social say the deadly incident in Wainwright is a sign of how fire behaves in 2026 — and that the military should have known.

Albertans have not given Danielle Smith a mandate to pursue constitutional changes including abolishing the Senate, elected judges or giving provinces more power to block federal laws.

Mississauga’s election is now a three-horse race. The latest polls indicate it will be a toss up between the former mayor, incumbent mayor and a police-endorsed challenger. Really enjoyed profiling one of the province’s most exciting races for @nationalobserver.com:

Eby and his team haven’t really presented a good reason for electing them, @maxfawcett.bsky.social writes. And after years of scorn toward the Greens' priorities, he's reduced to begging them for their strategic votes.

As Smith frames this week’s referendum results as a mandate to wrest more control over areas of existing federal jurisdiction to provinces, she finds herself in a weakened position that could reshape relations between Alberta and Canada.

Polls located in Indigenous communities consistently posted results where the "remain" option won by over 90 per cent.

Ontario’s struggling manufacturing and critical minerals sectors will get a $9-billion bump over the next five years, with billions earmarked to support steel companies as hundreds of workers face imminent layoffs.

The people of Fort McMurray tend to fall into two camps: people who want to separate, and people who understand why people would want to separate. Earlier this week, I wrote a story about their perspectives on the referendum. You can find that here:

Around six weeks ago, I started a new position at the Alberta reporter for @nationalobserver.com. This week, Albertans voted on separation. I spent the past three days in Fort McMurray speaking to people who work in and around Alberta’s oil patch about the referendum.

At a referendum watch party, signs emerged of where the separatism movement is going next. @readtheorchard.org reports from Edmonton

To date, the organization has been instrumental in conserving 25 million hectares of wildlife habitat — an area roughly the size of Peru.

“Alberta will never be independent as long as Danielle Smith remains premier of the province of Alberta."

Can you tell when political content has been generated by AI? @rorywh.bsky.social of @nationalobserver.com joins @jeyantvo.bsky.social to examine how campaigns are using AI, what voters should watch for and how these tools could shape future elections.

🍁 Attention freelance journalists 🍁 Canada's @nationalobserver.com is looking for your pitches. We have a healthy freelance budget (think potential travel), and are looking to fund interesting, ambitious reporting that dives deep into Canada's climate, energy, and politics.

@zoemas0n.bsky.social toured the oilsands from the air on referendum day.

The oilsands are at the centre of the separatist conversation, but the people who live and work there say they are on the periphery of Alberta's politics. @zoemas0n.bsky.social travelled to Fort McMurray to gauge the appeal of separatism in Alberta’s oilpatch.

There are currently no rules around how Ontario candidates use AI in their campaigns. @rorywh.bsky.social (@nationalobserver.com) tells @jeyantvo.bsky.social why the choices candidates make now could set the norms for future elections. | Producer: @keschner.bsky.social

Campaigns in 2026 have seen an explosion of references to responsible spending, property taxes and accountability. Meanwhile, explicit references to climate change have almost entirely disappeared. www.nationalobserver.com/2026/10/19/a...

In so many ways, Alberta’s political culture bears the hallmarks of unfinished adolescence: reflexive defiance, the yearning for freedom without consequences and the tendency toward whining, @maxfawcett.bsky.social writes, and the separatists are merely the logical expression of that reality.

With respect to the climate crisis, the future of Vancouver’s climate leadership hung in the balance in this election. Sim’s defeat means his multiple efforts to roll back Vancouver’s nation-leading climate policies are mercifully done, @sethdklein.bsky.social writes.

CNO's @rorywh.bsky.social compared more than 11,600 Facebook and Instagram ads from 603 candidates in 2022 and 676 in 2026. The language and messaging of local elections has changed dramatically in four years.

Asked about anti-tank rocket work that may have been going on and potential damage to gas infrastructure. Rutland says "It could have been any of that, or none of it." Says they're checking gas infrastructure for damage.

BREAKING: Carney confirms 4 service members are dead and "dozens more" are seriously injured.

The videos careen between awkward camera angles and scales, archival footage and clips of The Simpsons to paint Pete Fry as the candidate best placed to give the city a new start. What they lack in policy discussion they make up for in chaos. Will they get Fry elected mayor of Vancouver today?

Speaking at the Canadian Club Toronto on Friday, Joly says the government “will apply the full force of the law and every tool in the toolbox” to ensure the steel manufacturer remains operational in the face of decreased export demand caused by US tariffs on Canadian steel exports.

Prime Minister Mark Carney was in Calgary on Thursday to galvanize pro-Canada voters ahead of Alberta’s referendum next week — and took a rare shot at Premier Danielle Smith’s government along the way.

For many Canadians in a crisis, the first instinct is to call 911. But not on British Columbia’s central coast.

Logging took trees the bears called home, so the Haida Nation built them new dens [via @nationalobserver.com]

The celebrity investor pitched the $70-billion project as the "world's largest" AI data centre and experts estimate its gas-powered generators will emit enough carbon to put Canada back 20 years in emissions reductions.

Danielle Smith's latest salvo against the federal government takes aim at housing rules in Edmonton — changes to density that she says were forced on the city by Ottawa. But Edmonton has been working to density since long before the feds got involved.

Fresh story and photos from today for @nationalobserver.com. Last night, protestors halted construction crews who were set to remove the lanes.

Workers showed up hours before they were expected to begin removing bike lanes along Bloor St. @cloelogan.bsky.social reports from the scene, where protesters, police and construction crews are currently facing off.

In which I call out @naomiaklein.bsky.social, the CBC At Issue Panel and every other smart and decent Canadian who still chooses to use the social media site owned by the guy who wants to break our country up. Whatever you're doing on there isn't as important as what he's trying to do to you.

I am beyond thrilled to announce that, as of this week, I am now the Associate Editor at @nationalobserver.com For those who don't know, CNO is a daily online news outlet focused on Canada's response to our changing climate www.nationalobserver.com

The added pressure Geely’s arrival in the Canadian market will place on the annual cap — while equivalent to less than three per cent of Canada’s total new-car sales — could still trigger a scramble for market share.