There was a brief outbreak of election fever in Ontario this week after Premier Doug Ford refused to rule out an early election, even though the official election date is still two years away. Most of the victims of this fever were journalists and unnamed political insiders, all craving some excitement.

The speculation started when Ford gave a cagey answer to a dumb question. Ford had just announced that a big expansion of beer and wine retailing would start this year, not in 2026 as previously announced.