Opinion polls show John Tory will win a second term as Toronto mayor on Oct. 22. The political conditions couldn’t have aligned more favourably for the incumbent — and worse for citizens.Tory’s presumed 2018 mayoral opponent Doug Ford pivoted into provincial politics, instead, and miraculously ended up as premier of Ontario. Ford then threw a grenade into Toronto’s municipal elections by cutting the size of council nearly in half, mere weeks before the vote. Candidates scrambled to re-register in unfamiliar wards, voters remain unsure of the identity of their would-be representatives, and the normal ebb and flow of local democracy that allows citizens to slowly absorb and evaluate their political options has been shattered.The resulting chaos is most felt in the campaign for mayor — the quadrennial opportunity to review and discuss the city’s direction and test, possibly reset, its future course. Premier Ford made that thoughtful and sober exercise near impossible with his How to Destroy Toronto Council Act, a vindictive and crass political dictum masquerading as a bill to improve local government.So here we are, days before the vote and we hardly know the mayoral candidates — except Tory, of course, who we’ve seen in the papers almost every day for four years.Read more:Edward Keenan: Jennifer Keesmaat goes looking for Toronto the bold. But does it exist?Shawn Micallef: It took John Tory decades of effort to become mayor, so why is he squandering the opportunity?Jennifer Keesmaat struggling to gain on John Tory, poll showsIn the best of times, incumbents at city hall have an enormous advantage over challengers; this time, even more so. It’s not that we have more candidates for mayor to choose from this time — we have nearly half the 2014 roster; rather, it’s because we have so little time, and the shortened, compromised process discourages engagement.Again, good for Tory; bad for us.The Toronto ma ...
|
