Voters in Toronto to decide whether to extend Ford family’s reign in mayor seat

Monday is municipal voting day in Ontario. Toronto, Canada’s largest city, will be in the spotlight as residents decide whether to extend the Ford family’s reign by sending Rob Ford’s older brother to the mayor’s office—or going for former Ontario Progressive Conservative leader John Tory or ex-NDP MP Olivia Chow. Doug Ford, a rookie city councillor who has been his brother’s most vocal champion at city hall, jumped into the race last month after the scandal-plagued mayor was suddenly hospitalized for what was later diagnosed as a rare and aggressive cancer. Rob Ford—whose admitted substance abuse has made headlines around the world—is instead running for council in his former west Toronto ward, which his brother has held for the past four years and remains fiercely loyal to the family. Polls suggest Tory, a former CFL chairman and telecommunications executive, has a comfortable lead.

Doug Ford’s campaign has resonated but not with the Torontonians his campaign needs.

Quito Maggi, Mainstreet Technologies president

But Toronto won’t be the only one replacing a controversial incumbent. Voters in London will choose a successor for former Mayor Joe Fontana, who resigned this summer after he was convicted of government fraud for forging a check while he was a Liberal MP. Fontana, who is spending four months on house arrest, has pledged not to run for public office again. Mississauga residents will have a new mayor for the first time in nearly four decades. Hazel McCallion has won 12 municipal elections in a row with little campaigning but now plans to retire. The beloved 93-year-old mayor—nicknamed Hurricane Hazel—has thrown her support behind Bonnie Crombie, who is battling Steve Mahoney for the job. In nearby Brampton, a spending scandal could put an end to Mayor Susan Fennell’s tenure. A recent audit found she filed more than $172,000 in expenses that breached city policies, though some $41,000 were repaid.

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