Carney, Singh stage duelling rallies in London as Liberals look to flip NDP stronghold

With only a weekend to go until election day, Liberal Leader Mark Carney and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh shifted their attention to London, Ont., on Friday, ending the campaign's final week with duelling events in ridings that have incumbents from the other's party.

Singh's event on Friday evening at London Brewing Co-operative marked his second campaign visit to the core area riding of London Centre, while Carney's rally an hour later at Fanshawe College was his first to London—Fanshawe, the NDP stronghold that polling suggests will be a battleground riding on Monday.

"I think it's just really important that we show our support, and we get out there and talk to everybody to make sure that they vote. But I'm still nervous," said London resident Tiffany Hillman, one of several hundred people attending the Carney event, staged in an expansive room in the college's 'C' Building.

Carney arrived at the college at about 7:30 p.m. from Cambridge, after stopping in Georgetown and Sault Ste. Marie earlier in the day, and was introduced on the stage by his wife, Diana Fox Carney.

"We're at a college, a place of education, excitement, engagement, and ... empowerment. You get a quiz every once in a while, so I have a question," Carney told the crowd. "Who's ready? Who's ready to stand up for Canada with me?"

"I feel pretty confident" about Carney's chances, said Alex Harrington, a Western University student and first-time voter, acknowledging that, like Hillman, he's still a bit nervous about Monday.

"I know every time I look at the national polls, the lead narrows a little bit. I know [U.S. President Donald] Trump just made some more comments about the whole 51st state stuff, so that tends to help, at least with the Liberals."

As the election campaign nears the finish line, the Liberals have been targeting orange ridings to draw away NDP support and secure a majority. The New Democrats, meanwhile, have been working to shore up support to save existing seats and avoid potentially losing official party status.

London—Fanshawe, which has been represented by the NDP for nearly 20 years, appears to be one of the ridings the Liberals believe they have a shot at flipping in their quest for majority status.

NDP incumbent Lindsay Mathyssen, who is seeking a third term, won 43 per cent of the vote in 2021. However, recent polling suggests the race this time could be a toss-up between the NDP and Liberals, poll analyst Éric Grenier told CBC Radio's London Morning on Friday.

For Grenier, who runs CBC's Poll Tracker, the riding will be one to watch on election night.

"Whether it is an NDP vote, a vote for Mathyssen, or is it a vote that's just going to be an anti-Conservative vote, in which case the Liberals might pick it up," he said. "If the NDP is able to hold on, stay to official party status, 12 seats, it's probably because they won a seat like London—Fanshawe."

Grenier said he believes the New Democrats still have a good shot of holding the riding, something that can't be said of many other ridings the party holds, he added. As of Friday morning, CBC's Poll Tracker showed the party polling at 8.6 per cent, with victories projected in fewer than 12 seats if an election were held that day.

More red Liberal signs have been popping up in the London—Fanshawe neighbourhood of Becky and Mike O'Neil compared with previous years, when it would be mostly orange NDP signs.