CityNews Toronto to Host First Televised Ontario Provincial Party Leaders Debate, May 7

– All major Ontario provincial party leaders confirmed to participate: Doug Ford, Andrea Horwath, and Kathleen Wynne –
– #CityVote: The Debate to air live and commercial-free on City,CityNews.ca, the CityNews Apps, and the CityNews Facebook page –
– Multilingual audiences can watch the debate in Punjabi and Mandarin on OMNI2 –

TORONTO, April 20, 2018 /CNW/ - CityNews announced that it will host the first televised debate featuring all three major provincial party leaders in advance of the June election for the new Premier of Ontario. #CityVote: The Debate will air commercial-free on Monday, May 7 from 6 to 8 p.m. ET on City, CityNews.ca, the CityNews Apps for iOS and Android, and the CityNews Facebook page. For multilingual audiences in Ontario, the debate will also air on OMNI2 at 6 p.m. ET in Punjabi and at 10 p.m. ET in Mandarin. Additionally, analysis of the debate will be featured on OMNI Television's daily current affairs programs that evening – Focus Punjabi at 7:30 p.m. ET, Focus Cantonese at 8:30 p.m. ET, and Focus Mandarin at 9:30 p.m. ET.

"We're City, we're Toronto, and viewers who work and live in the city need a chance to see these leaders through our urban lens," said Dave Budge, VP of News & Information, Television, Rogers Media. "It's crucial that we focus this debate on issues that matter here, so the voters in Toronto get a chance to cut through the rhetoric and see how the vote will change life in the city".

Taking place at City studios in downtown Toronto, candidates Doug Ford, leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, Andrea Horwath, leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party, and Kathleen Wynne, leader of the Ontario Liberal Party, will sound off on hot-button issues, such as transit, health care, the legalization of marijuana, crime, and policing. Putting Torontonians front and centre, the debate will feature the faces behind some of CityNews's most compelling and thought-provoking stories from this past year, providing these individuals the chance to address the candidates directly on the issues that matter most. Following the debate, coverage continues with CityNews reporters gauging reaction and providing post-game-style analysis.

Giving audiences an immersive experience of the action in the studio, CityNews will feature a 360 view of the debate live streamed on its Facebook page. Additionally, throughout the broadcast viewers will have the opportunity to join the conversation and participate in live polling on social media, using the hashtag #CityVote.

Social Media Links
Visit CityNews Toronto at CityNews.ca
Follow CityNews Toronto at @CityNews
Like CityNews at Facebook.com/CityNews
Official Hashtag #CityVote

About City
City offers viewers intensely-local, urban-oriented, and culturally-diverse content through its seven television stations in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatchewan, Winnipeg, and Montreal, plus the award-winning City Video app. A distinct alternative to other conventional television stations, City delivers an entertaining mix of Canadian and acquired prime-time programming, news, and local-interactive formats with influential brands such as Cityline, CityNews, and Breakfast Television. City is part of Rogers Media, which is a subsidiary of Rogers Communications Inc. (TSX, NYSE: RCI). Visit Citytv.com.

SOURCE City

Media Contacts: Charmaine Khan, CityNews, 416.277.0450, [email protected]; Michelle Lomack, CityNews, 416.819.2783, [email protected]