[LINK] "Ontario's ex-deputy premier Smitherman laces up for Toronto's mayoral race"

[rfmcdonald]

The general consensus seems to be that Smitherman is the leading candidate for mayor of Toronto.

Ontario's former deputy premier George Smitherman laced up Friday for what could turn out to be the toughest game of his life - scoring the mayor's seat in Canada's most populous city.

The mercurial politician, known for being the province's first openly gay cabinet minister and self-described Liberal "attack poodle," signed up as a candidate in Toronto's mayoral race before heading out for a skate in front of city hall.

"It's about energy and it's about my ability to perform well on slippery surfaces," he said.

Skilfully dodging specifics about his "platform for action" - including how he plans to reduce Toronto's staggering $2.5-billion debt - Smitherman would only promise to make job creation his first priority as mayor.

"Over the course of this campaign, I'm going to bring what I brought to public life so far: a level of energy and a capacity to be a transformative figure and to move policy files along," he said before donning his hockey skates.

[. . .]

Smitherman, a trucker's son who grew up in Toronto's west end, has good reason to be jovial. His biggest competition and former political foe John Tory - who came a close second to current mayor David Miller in the 2003 election - bowed out of the race Thursday after mulling a bid for months.