Toronto elects Rob Ford as its next mayor

The vote count ended way before 9 p.m. and the people have spoken --- Rob Ford is Toronto's mayor-elect, the 64th to helm the city.

The Ford right-wing juggernaut couldn't be stopped and his message of cutting expenses and stopping the gravy train resonated with voters. Surrounded by family and friends at his west end home, Ford stood up when Toronto news station CP24 made the call and declared him the winner of a bruising race for City Hall.

George Smitherman, Ford's nearest rival, was gracious in defeat as he congratulated the new mayor. Joe Pantalone simply couldn't muster the support to propel him to the front lines and continuously trailed Ford and Smitherman. Calling democracy 'beautiful' the veteran councillor of 30 years who represented Trinity-Spadina (Ward 19) is now shut out of politics. Pantalone will stay in his council seat until November. 30.

Ford's win is a warning shot across the bow at Queen's Park and Premier Dalton McGuinty's government. McGuinty has been criticized as 'Premier Dad' for his social managing of the lives of Ontarians.

In any event, the 10-month race for Toronto mayor is over. For those who are into stats, here are the voting numbers: Ford captured 47.1% of the vote, Smitherman had 35.7% and Pantalone votes came in at 11.7%.

Declaring Toronto 'open for business' Ford will wear the mayoral mantle for the next four years.

May I say that I was pleasantly surprised at the voter turnout. I voted during the lunch hour and there was a queue of a dozen people at my polling station which increased as I left after casting my ballot. The indifferent voter was nowhere in sight. Torontonians care about their city.

The anybody-but-Ford momentum

This afternoon I ran into a fellow tenant who voted in the advance poll for the Toronto mayorship and was forthright in saying that she voted for Smitherman to stop Ford. I mentioned that I was still in the 'undecided' category. So they seem to be out there --- 'they' being the voters who cast their vote for Smitherman to stop Ford from being the next mayor of Toronto.

Was it only a few weeks ago that George Smitherman declared that he was 'the man to beat' and is therefore leading the anybody-but-Ford movement. That was when polls showed that the Etobicoke councillor had a 24-percentage-point lead over Smitherman. The numbers served as a battlecry for 'Furious' George who (figuratively) donned boxing gloves and asked voters to rally around an anybody-but-Ford camp.

In an October 14 article putting Smitherman and Ford deadlocked in a sprint to the finish, the Globe and Mail cited voters gravitating around the former not because they're 'enamoured' with the former deputy premier but because of antipathy towards the latter.

Will this anybody-but-Ford momentum translate into votes for George Smitherman and the brass ring? We have a week to go and votes to count when polls close on October 25.

Rossi: the best mayor Toronto never had?

I read the National Post's Matt Gurney's take on Rocco Rossi saying that he hopes Toronto voters will see Rocco Rossi again. Gurney says Mr. Rossi was the best choice for mayor. Not having held public office coupled with a lack of name recognition, Gurney looks at Rossi as the best choice for mayor for his lack of baggage and the offer of a fresh start adding that 'God knows, Toronto could use that.'

Perhaps. But Rossi had the misfortune (if indeed one could call it that) of being in a race that according to Gurney has become defined with Ford's outrage (Stop the gravy train! cut expenses!) and the other candidates responding to it.

And, yes, there were the rather off-putting (to me, anyway) 'Goodfella' campaign ads. Gurney adds that with Rossi gone from the mayoral race he hopes that the former candidate sticks around with his new-found name recognition. Whoever wins Gurney believes that our city will find itself in desperate need need of a moderate mayor without the burden of an embarrassing (and that word again!) baggage. So, if Mr. Rossi spends the next four years networking and maybe even reminding the populace of his potential then he might just be the man to come to Toronto's rescue.

Is it too close to call?

Editorial cartoon from the Toronto Star's Patrick Corrigan

We're almost down to the wire --- E-Day--- Election Day on October 25. Rocco Rossi dropped out due to single-digit poll numbers 'conceding his ideas did not gain traction' with Toronto voters. Now it's a two-man race to the finish line and the ultimate prize: City Hall. An election update from the Toronto Sun says the Toronto mayoral race will be a photo finish.

Front runner Rob Ford and George Smitherman in a dead heat with 18.5 per cent of voters still undecided according to CTV News. Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone still hanging in there not wanting to call it quits.

The endorsements are coming in with the Toronto Star shining its light on George Smitherman, Justin Trudeau made no bones about choosing Smitherman and the Sun beams in on Ford. Joe Pantalone kicks in with a MoeJoe endorsement gathering at his Bloor St. E. headquarters.

It's an exciting race to the finish! And I'm still undecided ...