Tuesday 26 October 2010

Rob Ford wins as Mayor of Toronto, but will he get the Council votes?

Rob Ford handily won the mayor's race in Toronto last night. But all may not be lost for the people of Toronto.
Ford has some pretty extreme ideas, and some of them are either not under the governance of the city council, or they are not changeable by council as per provincial laws.

So, what of the issues that Ford can tackle? Will he have the support of council to get away with destroying Toronto?

I've analyzed the new council and come to the conclusion that the makeup is not much changed from the previous council. There are more Right-wing councillors, but the Left and Centre/Centre-right still hold the balance

The Left and Centre have about 18 votes
Centre-right has about 6 votes
and
the Right has about 21 votes, including the mayor.
(The previous council was divided 23, 12, 10)

So, for Ford to win a vote, he has to win over the Centre-Right councillors. There is a good chance that these people won't go for any of Ford's extreme or ridiculous ideas. So, this might reduce the harm that Ford can do to our city.

On the other hand, this could result in a lot of fighting at City Hall with little getting accomplished. At worst, I think, Toronto will stagnate for the next 4 years while Ford makes a fool of himself in Toronto and in the eyes of the world. At best, Council will push forward leaving Mayor Ford sputtering on the sidelines.

Let's hope for the best.


More thoughts on the future of Toronto:
The Galloping Beaver: Good luck Mr. Ford, good luck Toronto

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