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The Toronto municipal election of 2003 was held on November 10, 2003, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to elect the Mayor of Toronto, 44 city councillors, and school board trustees.
David Miller was elected mayor (Results of 2003 Toronto election).
Most municipalities in the Province of Ontario held elections on this date. See also Ontario municipal elections, 2003.
[edit] Mayoral election
Incumbent Toronto mayor Mel Lastman chose not to run for re-election. A large number of candidates ran for the position of mayor, but five main candidates emerged.
- Barbara Hall is the former mayor of pre-amalgamation Toronto who had the support of many of the city's Liberals. She campaigned on a moderate policy of outreach to minorities and her connections to the provincial Liberal government which would enable a "new deal" for Toronto.
- John Nunziata, a former Member of Parliament for the Liberal Party of Canada, was expelled from the party because of his opposition to his party's continuation of the GST, something that the party had promised to abolish as part of its election platform. He ran a right-wing campaign for mayor of Toronto, advocating stiff penalties against the homeless and a strong focus on law and order.
- John Tory, who had just resigned as President and CEO of Rogers Cable. A supporter of the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party, he had served as Principal Secretary to Premier Bill Davis, and campaign co-chair of Mel Lastman's 1998 and 2000 mayoral runs. Tory ran a centre-right campaign promising to hire more police, fine panhandlers, and incinerate Toronto's garbage. He also promised rigorous fiscal discipline at city hall.
- David Miller, the most left wing of the major candidates, is closely associated with unions and the New Democratic Party. He had long served as a city councillor. His main cause was halting the expansion of the Toronto Islands Airport.
- Tom Jakobek, the former Budget Chief, gathered much media attention at the start and participated in various debates with the other candidates. He was quickly distanced from the front-runner race when the vote neared, as his campaign was hampered by recent municipal mismanagement, and admissions that he had lied about accepting gifts from lobbyists.
The campaign began with Barbara Hall far in the lead. She had wide name recognition and attracted moderate support from across Toronto. She also had close links with the newly elected Liberal government of Dalton McGuinty. John Nunziata was in a distant second, polling around 9% at the best, due to his past experience as a federal MP. John Tory and David Miller were closely tied for an even more distant third.
Around September, Hall began to lose support when it became apparent that she lacked a campaign message, sticking mainly to her "love for Toronto" and arguing that she could get a "new deal" with the provincial Liberals. Miller was attacked by all candidates for musing about tolls on roads leading into Toronto, but he dropped the proposal before it could do much harm. Miller's next message about banning the island airport bridge distinguished himself from the other candidates and he eventually vaulted into first place, to the surprise of many. Tory's support also began to grow steadily as Hall's eroded and he moved into a close second. At one point, Hall, Tory, and Miller each polled similar numbers, making it a three-way contest. As Hall's support dropped, the race had become essentially two way contest between Tory and Miller. As the race narrowed to a close, the two front-runners ran a respectful campaign without many negative partisan attacks. Tory was applauded when he appeared at Miller's rally to congratulate the latter's victory.
John Nunziata, long not considered a contender, dropped a bombshell on the media when it he announced that members of a rival camp offered him $150,000 and the Deputy Mayor's position if to drop out of the race. Nunziata refused to release specifics, although the media speculated that it was Tory's campaign, which was subsequently cleared by the police investigation. Tory in fact received a boost in the polls for his promise to drop out of the election if any wrong-doing had been discovered, while Nunziata was accused of mischief and smearing his opponent with unsubstantiated claim. As the campaign continued, Nunziata's reputation also suffered when he was alleged to have bullied councilors who withdrew their support from him. He was also dogged by his "flip-flopping" on controversial positions that he had taken as a federal MP, such as denying his private member's bill to ban abortion. Nunziata garnered only 5% of the vote and analysts believed that he had also damaged his credibility and future political prospects.
Despite a lack of election experience, John Tory was credited with running a respectable campaign which endured him to wide recognition and he later became leader of the Ontario PC Party.
Although it was known from the start that Tom Jakobek did not stand a chance of winning, he still continued in the election. Pundits noted that he regained some credibility because he campaigned for several practical ideas.
On July 17, 2006, The Toronto Star reported that there are more than 300,000 people on the list who may — or may not — have been legally allowed to vote. Since Miller beat Tory by only 36,000 votes, with the results it would only take a small portion of the unconfirmed list to affect an election outcome. Toronto Star article
[edit] City council
Most incumbent city councillors were re-elected. A prominent exception was Anne Johnston, the longest-serving member of city council. She lost her seat in Ward 16, apparently because of her approval of a controversial residential tower development in an adjoining ward. The council elections saw one of the highest rates of turnover in recent history. While only four incumbents lost their seats, many long standing councillors decided not to run for re-election. Of the 44 city councillors, 14 are newcomers. The election saw the council become more leftist, which should aid mayor Miller.
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| Suzan Hall (incumbent) |
3,462 |
| Vincent Crisanti |
2,580 |
| Ranjeet Chahal |
1,737 |
| Hazoor Elahi |
1,016 |
| Anthony Caputo |
948 |
| Michelle Munroe |
857 |
| Chitranjan Gill |
92 |
| Singh Khipple |
39 |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Rob Ford |
10,601 |
| Mohamed Dahir |
2,155 |
| Abdi Jama |
596 |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Doug Holyday |
12,207 |
| Ross Vaughan |
2,565 |
| Maurice Ferraro |
1,336 |
| Amber Saeed |
1,133 |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Gloria Lindsay Luby |
9,237 |
| Mario Giansante |
6,987 |
| Stephen Thiele |
2,491 |
| John Sumka |
261 |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| Mark Grimes |
5,334 |
| Berardo Mascioli |
3,982 |
| Jerry Smith |
3,437 |
| Diane Cleary |
1,180 |
| Mark Selkirk |
1,079 |
| Gregory Wowchuk |
893 |
| George Kash |
208 |
| Frederick Azman |
174 |
| David Searle |
94 |
| Robin Vinden |
83 |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Maria Augimeri |
7,898 |
74.18% |
| Anna Oppedisano |
1061 |
9.96% |
| Richard Baldachino |
779 |
7.31% |
| Annmarie Robb |
487 |
4.57% |
| Domenic D'Abruzzo |
422 |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Mike Feldman |
9,962 |
73.83% |
| Lorne Berg |
3,530 |
26.16% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Frances Nunziata |
9,819 |
77.98% |
| Rosemarie Mulhall |
2,772 |
22.01% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| Bill Saundercook |
7,909 |
39.73% |
| Stan Kumorek |
6,802 |
34.17% |
| Carol Jamieson |
2,929 |
14.71% |
| Margo Duncan |
1,455 |
7.31% |
| Henry Calderon |
461 |
2.31% |
| Caryl Manning |
347 |
1.74% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| Sylvia Watson |
7,441 |
52.51% |
| Ed Zielinski |
3,453 |
24.37% |
| Walter Jarsky |
847 |
5.97% |
| Neil Webster |
782 |
5.51% |
| Steven Aspiotis |
705 |
4.97% |
| David Smaller |
635 |
4.48% |
| Mark Chmielewski |
210 |
1.48% |
| Ed Veri |
95 |
0.67% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Howard Moscoe |
7,612 |
52.60% |
| Luigi Rizzo |
3,414 |
23.59% |
| Rocco Piccininno |
1,411 |
9.75% |
| Ron Singer |
1,196 |
8.26% |
| Howard Mandel |
536 |
3.70% |
| Jhadira Ramos |
302 |
2.08% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| Karen Stintz |
8,108 |
42.92% |
| (x) Anne Johnston |
5,787 |
30.63% |
| Albert Pantaleo |
3,172 |
16.79% |
| Michael Johnson |
1,188 |
6.28% |
| Alexander Hoffman |
634 |
3.35% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| Cesar Palacio |
5,127 |
44.99% |
| Alejandra Bravo |
4,336 |
38.05% |
| David Senater |
940 |
8.24% |
| Romolo Cimaroli |
530 |
4.65% |
| Nicolo Fortunato |
461 |
4.04% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| Adam Giambrone |
5,797 |
51.52% |
| Ana Bailao |
4,537 |
40.32% |
| Hortencia Fotopoulos |
386 |
3.43% |
| Nha Le |
234 |
2.08% |
| Cynamin Maxwell |
155 |
1.37% |
| Ana Salaverry-Chuquihuara |
141 |
1.25% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Joe Pantalone |
10,372 |
75.30% |
| Jeff Brown |
3,070 |
22.28% |
| Philip Vettese |
332 |
2.41% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Olivia Chow |
13,867 |
79.27% |
| Sandra Anstey |
2,254 |
12.88% |
| Brian Wicks |
608 |
3.47% |
| Roberto Verdecchia |
484 |
2.76% |
| Dean Jepson |
279 |
1.59% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Joe Mihevc |
10,875 |
65.63% |
| George Milne |
3,809 |
22.98% |
| Howard Levine |
1,089 |
6.57% |
| Maya Tarom |
522 |
3.15% |
| Gregory Moskos |
167 |
1.00% |
| Tony Corpuz |
107 |
0.64% |
| Candidate |
Votes |
% |
| (x) Michael Walker |
17,473 |
83.32% |
| Erika Marquardt |
3497 |
16.67% |
(to be completed)
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