John Tory finally backs a candidate in Toronto mayoral election

Tory revealed Wednesday he endorses Ana Bailao in Monday’s byelection, while Doug Ford warned an Olivia Chow victory would be ‘unmitigated disaster’ for the city.

Thestar.com
June 22, 2023
Ben Spurr, Kristin Rushowy and Rob Ferguson

Two political power brokers are making a last-ditch push to get their chosen candidates over the finish line and thwart front-runner Olivia Chow as the Toronto mayoral race enters its final days.

Former mayor John Tory revealed Wednesday he is endorsing Ana Bailao in Monday’s byelection, while Premier Doug Ford warned a Chow victory would be an “unmitigated disaster” for the city.

But a defiant Chow -- the former New Democrat MP leading in most polls since she announced her candidacy in April -- said the pair of politicians amounts to just “two votes.”

“They don’t get to decide the next mayor of our city, the people do,” Chow said in a statement.

Bailao is a former councillor for Davenport who served as one of Tory’s deputy mayors. Despite previously declaring he wouldn’t weigh in on the contest to replace him, Tory told the Star in an exclusive interview that he’s backing her because she “brings the right kind of disposition in terms of how you do the job.”

“She’s not a divisive person. She’s not a polarizing person. She’s a collaborator,” he added.

Tory’s endorsement comes with just five days to go in the three-month campaign, with polls suggesting Bailao is dire need of a boost to have a chance of winning. Despite the backing of a long list of elected officials, and a campaign operation staffed by many of the seasoned political strategists who helped Tory win three straight elections, polls show she has the support of about 13 per cent of decided voters, putting her well behind Chow who is at more than 30 per cent.

Tory said he decided to speak up now on the byelection triggered by his resignation because people have been asking him -- even coming up to him on the street -- seeking his advice.

“I was just watching it like everybody else was, and I just felt that it was the time now, in light of the fact that other former mayors, other government officials have indicated the choices they’ve made,” he said.

Tory said he felt he had “almost a responsibility to say, as someone who most recently had this job for eight years, what I thought was going to be best for the city, and I’ve had a number of people urging me to do it, too.”

Some close to Bailao’s team have confided that an endorsement from Tory, who won last fall’s election with a sweeping 62 per cent of the vote, was her last best play to close the gap on Chow.

But the backing of the former mayor may also come with baggage in an election where voter dissatisfaction with his administration’s record on housing, affordability and city services plays a central role.

Publicly commenting on the race also risks raising uncomfortable questions for Tory, who resigned in February after a Star investigation revealed he had a relationship with a member of his office staff. In announcing his departure, he admitted to a “serious error of judgment” but he has never publicly taken questions about his conduct and since leaving office has mostly stayed out of the public eye.

In contrast to other politicians who have endorsed Bailao, the former mayor didn’t appear with her in front of reporters on Wednesday. But in a recorded video and written statement issued by her campaign, he said “stepping down as mayor was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.”

“I did it because I care deeply about my family and as I said I would do, I have been working hard to make things better with them in light of some of the mistakes that I made,” he said.

“I also did it because I care about this city. Because I believe there is no more important role than public service, and that we should hold ourselves accountable to the standards we need to expect from our leaders. The mayor of Toronto must be laser focused on what’s best for the city. There cannot be distractions, or doubt or division.”

Tory told the Star that he saw Bailao work with the both provincial and federal governments, Conservative and Liberal, and “I can tell you, she was respected by all of them ... That gives you a significant advantage ... They know you’re tough, but at the same time, they also know they can work with you. I think that is one of the most important attributes” especially when it comes to issues like housing and transit.

At an unrelated announcement in Burlington, Ford stepped up his praise for former police chief Mark Saunders, and warned Chow would implement tax hikes, chasing businesses and jobs out of the city.

“God forbid Olivia Chow gets elected, your taxes are going up at an unprecedented rate,” Ford charged, taking aim at the former city councillor and school trustee.

The comments marked a sharp change in tone for the premier, who on Tuesday said if Chow is elected, “I’ll work with her,” and “we’ll sit down and come up with some common ground.”

Chow has repeatedly said on the campaign trail that she cannot pinpoint what any tax increases would be until she gets a full picture of the city’s finances, but has pledged the hikes would be “modest.”

She’s promised to get the city more directly involved in building affordable housing, reverse TTC service cuts and to reinvest in parks and other services that many felt suffered under Tory’s centre-right, low-tax rule.

“Life is not affordable for a lot of people and the status quo is not working. That is why my message of building a more affordable, caring and safe city is being welcomed by so many Torontonians,” Chow said in a written statement.

But Ford said Wednesday that “businesses are going to be fleeing Toronto as far as I’m concerned. My biggest fear is the gravy train 2.0 coming down the track.”

Ford, who has a Saunders sign on his Etobicoke front lawn, said the former police chief is “the only one that’s run a billion-dollar operation with 7,000 employees, he’s the only one who has represented every part of our city.”

The premier’s outburst at Chow came as he was asked about Tory’s endorsement of Bailao. Ford dismissed candidates other than Saunders as “basically downtown” types, and said he hasn’t talked to him in a couple of weeks.

Bailao’s team had been pressing for Tory to publicly back her for much of the election. His decision to endorse came the day after Ford said Tuesday he was voting for Saunders.

Saunders said in a statement that he wasn’t surprised the former mayor had endorsed Bailao. The focus of the election has been “the things in Toronto that need fixing,” such as violence on the TTC, homeless encampments, rising car thefts and worsening gridlock, and all those problems “happened on John Tory’s watch,” he said.

The former mayor “is just fine with the status quo. I’m not,” said Saunders, who was police chief under Tory for five years.

Another candidate, Josh Matlow, said in a message posted to Twitter that “John Tory and Doug Ford don’t get to tell you who to vote for,” and asked for voters’ support “to take a stand for Toronto and take back our city.”

Brad Bradford, who was an ally of Tory’s before entering the mayor’s race, tweeted “Yesterday’s politicians are not the answer to today’s problems,” while Mitzie Hunter said voters don’t want more of the “same old faces from the same places” and her campaign was offering to bring fresh new ideas to city hall.

On Friday, Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie also announced she was supporting Bailao, who already had the backing of seven sitting council members. McKelvie was appointed to the deputy mayor position by Tory, and had also vowed to stay neutral in the race.

On Wednesday, the Star’s editorial board issued its own endorsement of Bailao.