Canada On Election Alert as Leaders Visit Key Ridings

With a key budget vote looming, there is every indication that the next election will be won and lost in a handful of urban ridings.

Federal leaders are coming to a town near you. Michael Ignatieff, Stephen Harper, and Jack Layton are all visiting constituencies they’re hoping to steal from their rivals this month, seemingly confirming speculation that preparations for a spring election are ramping up. The Conservatives need to pick up 12 more seats than they won in 2008 in order to form a majority, and the party is targeting suburban ridings outside of Toronto that are traditionally Liberal. Stephen Harper was in Mississauga Thursday to speak at a Coptic Christian Church, while Ignatieff arrived in Richmond, B.C. to kick off a 20-riding whirlwind tour. Layton was in Sudbury earlier this week and will travel to Ottawa Friday.