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Ontarians have found a lot of problems with Kathleen Wynne's performance as Premier over the last few years, but one thing they can't fault her for is lack of stoicism.  Facing all-time low approval ratings earlier this year, Wynne has remained utterly undeterred in continuing her stewardship over the province despite facing what looks like insurmountable unpopularity and some recent calls within her own party to step down for the good of the party.  Wynne, through it all, has kept up appearances of an outwardly steadfast pride in her (dismal to many) record as the leader of Ontario over the past five years, even as her ship seems to be taking on water from all sides.

No matter how dire things have gotten, Wynne at least publicly has shown a tenacity and resolve that outmatches many current or former Canadian leaders that come to mind.  That's why it shouldn't surprise anyone that Wynne and her Ontario Liberal Party have been rigorously promoting her town hall meeting planned for 6:30 p.m. this evening at The Concert Hall (888 Yonge Street, Toronto) in spite of the regular backlash and abuse they face on a daily basis from disgruntled and disaffected members of the public venting or spewing or lashing out on social media.

At this point the savvy reader is thinking the Liberals have carefully staged this town hall meeting to avoid the gathering of an angry mob of people shouting tough and loaded and belligerent questions at an embattled Wynne.  However, looking at the size of the venue, it could be awfully challenging especially in the current climate for the OLP to find 1,200 party faithful ready to drown the room in warmth and love.  Furthermore, the event details, posted on the government website, clearly state that attendees will be let in on a first come, first served basis.  Doors open to a general public generally unhappy with the premier's performance at 5:30 p.m. for what will either be a crazy circus, a proverbially firing squad, or a well orchestrated and rehearsed production.

Although the hot-ticket event is ostensibly open to the public at large, there are still a few ways the OLP could bend fortune in their favour.  First, the listing of the event on the government web site asks the public to RSVP.  This doesn't guarantee an individual a seat but is simply meant supposedly to give the event organizers an estimate on how much seating will be needed to be provided for attendees.  It will be interesting to see how many seats the Liberals end up providing Ontarians, and if there will be a lot of people turned away.  Looking at the venue's website, the hall is versatile in hosting a range of different-sized events, meaning the town hall could have, let's say, a few hundred or up to the aforementioned maximum 1,200.  The second way in which Wynne and the Liberals can control the event from becoming a PR nightmare is to have a moderator selectively choosing planted Liberal-friendly crowd (dis)pleasers to lob softball questions at Wynne who will be all too happy to knock them out of the park with rehearsed answers.  Third, if the Liberals keep the seats limited, and they get many supporters out early, a fair amount of the hall could be filled with Wynne loyalists.  (The townhall location doesn't help rural Ontarians, few of which are Wynne fans, who can't make it to Toronto by late afternoon at the beginning of a work week.)

From a government as well operated in chicanery as the Ontario Liberals have become, I expect nothing less than some sort of combination of the above tactics employed.  However, I also don't doubt Wynne will allow for some detractors and straight-up haters to ask pointed questions and vitriolic demands/nasty comments respectively.  Wynne has shown a steely determination and poise when under fire.  She'll address their tough questions and criticism head on, without missing a beat, even if her answers will likely be unsatisfactory, sidestepping answering the ugly truth.  As for nasty comments and name-calling, she'll revel in the opportunity to turn the other cheek and act as if she still has the moral high ground.

Wynne, from observing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's mea culpa tour earlier this year, knows taking some abuse and anger from a few hoser Canadians can actually garner a politician some sympathy from the average Canadian in showing one's humility, and, for the win, one's humanity.  This could end up contrasting well against a stiff Patrick Brown, paralyzed by fear of saying anything remotely controversial or distinguishing, at the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario's policy convention next Saturday.  Furthermore, the town hall environment allows a pro public speaker like Wynne, standing on a stage with a mic and the spotlight, an incredible advantage over any would-be takers potentially in a sea of her supporters hostile to outsiders impertinence itching to take a shot at asking the consummate professional a quick question.  Wynne can then take her sweet time at dismantling any boobytraps thrown her way.  Good luck to any takers.

Nevertheless, groups like Ontario Proud intend to stoke the flames and derail Wynne's town hall.  Ontario Proud is essentially a third-party elections campaign organization that has amassed nearly 300,000 Facebook followers in the span of a year-and-a-half.  Following in the footsteps of Brexit and the US election, where social media proved to be crucial in creating grassroot support and momentum, Ontario Proud has been killing the competition (newspapers, other third-party campaigners and political parties) in Facebook engagement.  Even though Ontario Proud clearly has paid for some of its exposure and growth on the king of social media websites, its following of about 1 in every 45 Ontarians and its reach of millions of Ontarian voters is undeniable.  Ontario Proud has already hijacked a Facebook live town hall hosted by Wynne that the Liberals ended up deleting in embarrassment over the overwhelming negativity from Facebook users.  Ontario Proud then spiked the football and created a victory video.  I don't expect the Liberals will let Ontario Proud get the best of them twice.  Wynne knows luck favours the prepared.

I will be there promptly, an hour before doors open, so I ensure I get a front row seat to the show and can get a feel for the crowd.  I'll also tweet any noteworthy observations in how the event is set up and any noteworthy exchanges.  That being said, my expectations of fireworks are curbed by the knowledge that the Liberals will be pulling out all the stops to ensure this goes off without a hitch.  They fully intend to lull Ontarians' ire with banality and platitudes.  Even still, at the very least, there should be a bit of unpredictability to the live event that would allow for the element of surprise, which could allow for the odd spark to fly.  Just don't expect fire.

Photo Credit: Fox Broadcasting Company

Written by Graeme C. Gorodn

The views, opinions and positions expressed by columnists and contributors are the author’s alone. They do not inherently or expressly reflect the views, opinions and/or positions of our publication.