Former councilwoman Ana Bailão is running for mayor of Toronto
Former councilwoman Ana Bailão said Friday that she will run for mayor in Toronto’s next by-election in June.
“I’m running with a plan to fix our city’s services, build housing and make life more affordable,” she said in a tweet announcing her candidacy.
Bailão served as a councilor for 12 years from 2010 to 2022, during which time he represented Ward 9 Davenport and his previous configuration, Ward 18 Davenport. In her last municipal election in 2018, she won in a landslide with almost 84 percent of the vote.
During the last five years of her tenure at City Hall, she was also one of four deputy mayors — the only woman in that group.
In an interview with CBC Toronto, Bailão said one of her top priorities would be to secure a “fair deal” for Toronto when it comes to provincial and federal government funding.
Key to the concept, she said, would be giving the province financial responsibility for the operation and maintenance of the Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway. Those costs were passed on to Toronto taxpayers in the 1990s, and Bailão said the city needed that money to invest in essential services like the TTC.
She said it was fair considering drivers from all over the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) use these freeways every day, but only Toronto residents pay to use them.
Former Mayor John Tory made the same idea public last year, only to be quickly rebuked by Prime Minister Doug Ford’s government, which categorically refused to even consider the proposal.
Bailão said it would change the conversation if she had a strong mandate from Toronto voters.
“I think there’s a difference between thinking about it and running at it. And I walk on it. I will get a mandate from the people of Toronto,” she said.
Bailão was a close political ally of Tory and often acted as his contact on the housing file before announcing last May that she would not be up for re-election in last autumn’s local elections.
Reversing public transport cuts would be among her other priorities, she said.
“Unless we restore these services, our TTC faces a very dark future.”
Bailão also said she will focus on building more supportive housing to ease the strain on Toronto’s overcrowded emergency shelter system.
Her decision to run came after discussions with constituents across the city, who told her life had become unaffordable while services across the board deteriorated, she added.
“I heard that loud and clear. This is a city of opportunity. I felt it when I arrived when I was 15, and I want to make sure every 15-year-old in this city continues to feel that way,” said Bailão, who came to Toronto from Portugal.
The upcoming June 26 mayoral by-election was sparked by Tory’s abrupt resignation last month after he admitted having an extramarital relationship with a former employee at his office.
The nominations for candidates officially open on April 3rd at 8:30 am and close on May 12th at 2:00 pm
Who’s in, who’s out so far
A crowded field is developing in the race to succeed Tory.
This week, former Toronto City Councilman Giorgio Mammoliti announced that he plans to run for office. Mammoliti lost his council seat in the 2018 election and moved to Wasaga Beach, where he ran unsuccessfully for mayor of that city.
Other current council members are also positioning themselves for a mayoral election, including Josh Matlow, Brad Bradford and Stephen Holyday, although none like Bailao have definitely said they’re “on it”.
Some who ran in the last mayoral election will also run again, including Gil Penalosa, Chloe Brown and Blake Acton.
Then there are those who are currently out of town hall orbit.
Former Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders is reportedly considering a run, while provincial politician Mitzie Hunter is also exploring options, telling reporters from Queen’s Park that she is “considering”.
NDP MPP Bhutila Karpoche, who represents the Parkdale-High Park area, is also said to be interested in running but said on Twitter that she would not be taking part in the race.
Many more Torontonians are expected to put forward their names in the coming weeks. In the last election, 31 people ran for mayor only to see Tory drive to victory.
