A group of activists raising doubts about the validity of election opinion polls at recent Conservative events are in the spotlight over links to Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who has been an outspoken critic of federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.
The organizers of the “Do you believe the polls?” group are denying Premier Ford or his office orchestrated their campaign although they admit to being supporters of his and making hefty donations to the Ontario Progressive Conservatives.
The couple pictured in the “Do You Believe The Polls” shirts are Founder & President of the Meadowvale Business Association, Shara & Paul Micucci. pic.twitter.com/wcG6DNSNC6
— Stacey (@StaceyMonette27) April 15, 2025
At a rally Poilievre held in Brampton, a group of about seven people arrived at the event with the question “Do you believe the polls?” plastered on their sweaters and on a large banner.
The demonstration drew significant criticism from political observers, with some seeing the campaign as an ongoing attempt to link Poilievre to U.S. President Donald Trump.
The couple behind the effort, Paul and Shara Micucci are staples of the Ontario business and Progressive Conservative scene. Shara is the founder of the Meadowvale Business Association while Paul is the organization’s chairman and president.
Paul has also worked prominently in Ontario’s gambling industry, formerly serving as the CFO of Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, the founder of Rama Gaming House Mississauga and Toronto East, and a former executive vice president of Magna Entertainment’s gaming division.
Pictures of the Micuccis have surfaced online of the couple posing with Premier Ford at an Ontario PC convention.
The Meadowvale Business Association held an event on March 7 hosting Ford for a breakfast and fireside chat, with pictures emerging from the event depicting the Miccucis sitting together at a table.
Users online have speculated that the Micuccis are connected or were instructed by Premier Ford to disrupt federal Conservative events by posing the controversial question as a means to generate negative media attention.
This comes after tense relations between the Ontario PCs and the federal Conservatives have come to light, with accusations that Poilievre and Ford do not see eye-to-eye on policy and that Poilievre waited weeks to congratulate Ford on his recent election victory.
Premier Ford defended comments his campaign manager Kory Teneycke had made bashing the Conservatives’ campaign, accusing Poilievre’s camp of “campaign malpractice” for not attacking U.S. President Donald Trump with sufficient vigour.
In an interview with the Toronto Sun, the group’s organizers Paul and Shara Micucci said that they are motivated by a focus on policy matters and alleged they are not being backed by the Ontario PCs.
“Things have gone crazy online and in the news and we just wanted to set the record straight about what we were going for,” said Paul, holding a “Do you believe the polls?” sign with his wife.
“We really wanted to get people to not focus on the polls but focus on the policy issues, that was the initial intent of it.”
Responding to a question about a picture depicting Paul and Shara at an event with Ford, she denied that the group has a connection with Ford or are affiliated with any other group.
“No it’s not, that was at one of his events, so we’re not linked with him.”
The Miccucis are generous donors to the Ontario Progressive Conservatives, donating $23,801 to the party and its candidates since 2014, with the bulk of these donations coming in since Ford became the Progressive Conservative leader and premier. In addition to extensive donations to the Ontario PCs, Paul had only donated to the federal Conservative party $2,000 in July 2022.