Who do you have in your mind? Who do you think can make a difference for the city of Toronto? Who is the mayor you have in mind? That’s right. It’s that time again, where we elect our new mayor for Toronto after seven years. In order to consider which mayor would make Toronto a better city we need to know each of the candidates running for the position of Toronto’s Mayor. We also, as residents of Toronto need to let the candidates know what we want changed in Toronto. We elect them which means we need to voice our concerns and suggestions for our city.
On October 25 2010, the municipal election will be held in Toronto. The municipal election is to elect a mayor for the city as well as city councillors and school trustees. This year a mayor will be elected as well as 44 city councillors. School Trustees will also be elected for the Toronto District School Board, Conseil scolaire de district du Centre- Sud-Ouest, Conseil scolaire de district catholique Centre-Sud and Toronto Catholic District School Board. Let’s take a brief look at some of the candidates.
The mayor is the officer that is the highest ranked within a municipal government. The mayor takes responsibility to insure the city is running well.
Rob Ford was born in in 1969 and is a city councillor in Toronto. He represents one of the Etobicoke North wards, which is Ward 2. Ford is Doug Ford’s son who was a Member of the Provincial Parliament. Ford has been living in Toronto since birth. Ford is a member of the Salvation Army’s Red Shield Appeal, Heart and Stroke Foundation, Toronto Board of Trade and the Toronto West Rotary Club, Terry Fox Foundation and the Etobicoke Chamber of Commerce. Ford has given $20,000 out of his own pockets to fund equipments for football and a high school and has began a foundation to help fund other schools who are struggling with football equipments. He is active within football programs believing it is a good way for at-risk kids to involve themselves in something positive. As a councillor, he continuously has proposed ideas to cut back on the spending that are used by city politicians. He has made headlines for using the least amount of money compared to other councillors for his councillor office expenses. He has also brought up the issues of councillors who have a tax free status to Revenue Canada. With this matter, on April 30, 2010, the city councillors were told to pay for their bus passes which was a freebie before.
Being a city councillor for Ward 7 which is of York West, Giorgio Mammoliti who is a landscaper is another candidate running for the mayor position. Mammoliti is Chair of the Affordable Housing Committee as well as a member of the mayor’s executive committee. He was also a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. He is the head of Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 767. He did run for Ontario New Democratic Party which was in the 1990s provincial election. He as original part of the NDP and had switched to Liberal party. In the election he was upsetting to the Liberals as he did not receive outstanding votes. Mamomoliti believed strongly in same-sex marriage and is a big supporter. Within the past fifteen years, Mammoliti has been the chair of the Toronto Zoo Board, Co-Chair of Canada Municipalities Housing Action Network, Chair of the City’s International Committee, Toronto’s Executive Committee as well as Chair of the City’s International Committee. He has been part of developing roads within is Ward as well.
Being one of the Deputy Mayors, Joe Pantalone is a person who has a concern with environmental issues. He has lost four times before he finally won a municipal seat. He is part of Ward 19 which is Trinity-Spadina. Representing the provincial riding of Toronto Centre in Legislative Assembly of Ontario between 1999-2010, another candidate George Smitherman has been elected in Ontario and is openly gay. He is also Ontario’s first openly gay cabinet minister. He is the cabinet Minister of Health. Being one of the former CEO of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario, Rocco Rossi businessman, non-profit and political leader. Rossi focuses in his campaign on reduing the city debt, reducing congestion on city streets, creating jobs by attracting new investment as well as improving public transit. He has also said that he will reduce his own salary by ten percent and keep it like that for the four-year term. Not only males are running for the mayor position. Sarah Thomson who is a CEO and a publisher of Women’s Post magazine is a woman running for the mayor position. In her campaign she promises to build subway lines instead of TTC’s planned streetcar based rapid transit lines as well as opening the city to services as well as competitive bidding for the private sector.
These are just brief information on the candidates running for the position. Who will you choice? Who do you think will be the right mayor for Toronto? Don’t forget to vote on October 25 2010.
