There's no such thing as Ontario

I think there's a bit too much emphasis in federal politics on the idea that provinces are homogenous. This may (or may not) be true in some provinces, I'm not really immersed enough to know, but I think it's foolhardy to act like there's an "Ontario Vote." I'm sure I have more in common, personally and politically, with someone in Vancouver than someone in Pickle Lake. In fact, I may have more in common with your average Vancouverite than your average denizen of, say, Ancaster. Of course, it isn't just urban/suburban/rural. I'm sure I have more in common with a 20-something professional in Pickle Lake than an independently wealthy 60-something a few blocks away in Forest Hill. But then, I might have more in common with a childfree 60-something professional in Calgary than with a 20-something mother of four in midtown. But I digress.

My point is that there isn't really any homogenous "Ontario" sentiment. You may be able to effectively categorize 416 or 905 or urban or suburban or rural or various economic or demographic indicators, but there's no one vote that's really "Ontario." I am not typical of Ontario, nor is the society matron in Rockcliffe, or the superannuated steelworker in Hamilton, or the tobacco farmer in Hagarsville, or the beleagured band on the Kashechewan reserve, or the multi-family Sikh household in Brampton. Even if our voting patterns do coincide somewhat, it isn't for the same reasons, which means a politician could win some of us, but lose other in the process. We are far from homogenous, so little good can come of referring to Ontario as a single entity.