TORONTO — Ontario is set to go on a “charm offensive” in the United States in the coming weeks now that Donald Trump has won the presidential election.

Premier Doug Ford and Economic Development Minister Vic Fedeli say government representatives will head down south to protect jobs and promote trade.

Trump has criticized electric vehicles and has mused about ripping up government subsidies, including the Inflation Reduction Act that President Joe Biden put in place in 2021.

Those deals helped lure automakers to build EV-related plants in the U.S. while Canada was forced to match those production tax credits in deals with Stellantis and Volkswagen, both of which are building EV battery plants in the province.

Ford says he’s not worried about it and believes electric vehicles are the future.

Fedeli says he is heading to Washington, D.C. in December and January and will also be touring several states in January with the same message as Ford: protecting Ontario jobs.

“I call it a charm offensive to remind them that we need each other for both economies to grow,” Fedeli said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.

The Canadian Press