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rfmcdonaldLast night, NDP MP Olivia Chow--as notable for her own accomplishments as for her marriage to the late Jack Layton had a book launch for her biography, My Journey. There, William Wolfe-Wylie noted for Canada.com, she didn't say she was running for mayor, but she came close.
John Tory, who has appeared in this blog as a public figure only since the 2009 collapse of his political career, seems on the verge of running. (The Globe and Mail's Jill Mahoney reported.)
(Torontoist's John Barber wonders if Tory is still relevant, given the decline of the old Red Tory tradition and its replacement in the Canadian conservative tradition by the populism represented by Ford.)
Karen Stintz, meanwhile, is preparing for her campaign as the Toronto Star's Betsy Powell noted some days ago.
At a standing-room only event on Wednesday evening to promote her new book, My Journey, Olivia Chow defied expectations and made no announcements about her political ambitions.
Chow has long been regarded as a key challenger to Rob Ford in this fall’s municipal election. Ford has been wrapped in scandal for nearly a year after allegations of drug and alcohol abuse turned out to be true and he was stripped of many of his mayoral powers. Following a fresh round of videos this week, three Toronto-based newspapers again called for the mayor to resign.
[. . .]
But while Chow didn’t make any explicit announcements, she did allude to the challenges Toronto faces and her ideas to help solve them. She spoke about the divisive nature of politics and the need for people to unite in the face of adversity. At several points during her interview with musician, photographer and broadcaster Sook-Yin Lee, she seemed to be building toward an announcement of some kind but then distanced herself from the topic.
[. . .]
Chow also spent some of her interview talking about her previous political victories on the municipal stage in Toronto, including her push to include multilingual support services on 9-1-1 operators and her support of social programs to help recent immigrants.
Chow came off funny, candid and as a woman who had learned much from a long and complicated life. She focused on her belief in the power of grassroots movements and the importance of speaking for people with little voice of their own. At several points in the evening she reiterated the importance of helping others at any opportunity and of avoiding divisive politics that harm those goals.
John Tory, who has appeared in this blog as a public figure only since the 2009 collapse of his political career, seems on the verge of running. (The Globe and Mail's Jill Mahoney reported.)
Radio host John Tory says he still has not made up his mind about whether to run for Toronto mayor as speculation continues about whether he and NDP MP Olivia Chow will challenge scandal-plagued Rob Ford.
Mr. Tory took to the airwaves on Wednesday evening to deny a Toronto Star story suggesting that he would launch his campaign in late February.
“There has been no decision taken to run or not to run,” Mr. Tory told Newstalk 1010, where he hosts an afternoon radio show.
[. . .]
Mr. Tory, who lost the 2003 mayoral race to David Miller and served as leader of the provincial Progressive Conservatives, said he would decide whether to run in February. A group of supporters is organizing a possible campaign to “preserve an option for me to run if I choose to do so,” he told the radio station.
[. . .]
Mr. Tory’s still-unofficial campaign team includes senior organizer Bob Richardson, a connected Liberal, and John Capobianco, a Conservative former Ford supporter.
(Torontoist's John Barber wonders if Tory is still relevant, given the decline of the old Red Tory tradition and its replacement in the Canadian conservative tradition by the populism represented by Ford.)
Karen Stintz, meanwhile, is preparing for her campaign as the Toronto Star's Betsy Powell noted some days ago.
Would-be Toronto mayoralty candidate Karen Stintz is calling out her rival, Mayor Rob Ford, for his offensive “conduct towards women” and suggesting sexism on the campaign trail will be unavoidable.
[. . .]
Stintz plans to file her nomination papers at city hall after she steps down as chair of the Toronto Transit Commission next month. Her weekend speech is a preview of a candidate positioning herself as someone with the tenacity and grit to withstand the downside of public life: “rising” cynicism and declining voter participation.
“I argue that now, more than ever, we must get involved,” the speaking notes say. “If Rob Ford has demonstrated anything, it is that it does matter whether or not we vote and it does matter who we vote for.”
During his term in office, the mayor has exhibited “disturbing” and “appalling” behavior, the speaking notes say. “Both his own conduct and his conduct towards women in his public statements have been reprehensible.”
