After a close contest, Ottawa residents elected former journalist Mark Sutcliffe as mayor on Monday night, preferring him to Catherine McKenney, a progressive nonbinary who once served on city council. In Toronto, the electorate returned incumbent mayor John Tory to power after a race that, however, never jeopardized the re-election of the centrist politician.
As these lines were written, the CTV television network predicted victory for Mark Sutcliffe in what was above all a duel with Catherine McKenney, who held a considerable lead in the polls this summer. This has shrunk in recent months, to the point where it disappeared on election night. Mark Sutcliffe collected more than 50% of the votes at the time these lines were written. He succeeds Jim Watson, mayor since 2010, who was not seeking a new mandate.
Mark Sutcliffe was able to count on the support of almost all Liberal MPs from the Ottawa region during his campaign, including that of the interim leader of the Ontario Liberal Party, John Fraser. According to three observers interviewed by The duty, the new mayor of Ottawa had the support of the reds in particular, since they wanted to avoid giving oxygen to the NDP in the Canadian capital. Catherine McKenney was formerly Legislative Assistant to NDP Leader Ed Broadbent.
In October, influential Franco-Ottavians organized a fundraising dinner for Mark Sutcliffe, even before he unveiled his Francophone platform, a set of proposals more substantial than that of Catherine McKenney. “Through his support for bilingualism, his experience as an entrepreneur, his community involvement and his energy, he will take care of us,” read a letter written by lawyer Ronald Caza and consultant Benoît Hubert inviting the community to fundraising activity.
Mark Sutcliffe campaigned at the centre, one of the reasons that won him the newspaper’s support ottawa citizen, where he chronicled for more than a decade. He plans to increase the police budget and increase the police presence in the downtown ByWard Market area. He also plans to spend $100 million over four years to improve road quality and opposed Catherine McKenney’s plan to spend $250 million on a green bond to improve cycling infrastructure.
Victory expected in Toronto
Unsurprisingly, Toronto’s incumbent mayor John Tory, also a centrist, easily won the election on Monday, garnering nearly 60% of the vote as these lines were written. The former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party was ahead in the race from start to finish. His main opponent – internationally renowned architect Gil Penalosa – only entered the race in July and has never been able to threaten the re-election of the mayor in office since 2014.
John Tory won his bet without making flagship promises, as was the case in the 2014 campaign. The mayor of the Queen City plans, among other things, to limit the growth of property taxes. It will therefore have to find another way to make up for a deficit of $857 million in order to balance the budget next year. This could result in municipal services being cut, although John Tory did not say if this would happen.
He will have more power in the drafting of the next budget, however, thanks to new and increased powers granted by the provincial government in September. Starting in November, the mayors of Toronto and other major cities, including Ottawa, will be able to veto by-laws that interfere with provincial priorities, such as building 1.5 million homes in 10 years. The mayor of Toronto did not openly oppose the bill, as did other candidates in the province.
Former provincial leaders in the running
North of Toronto, two former provincial party leaders were trying to get elected. Patrick Brown, the former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario and candidate for the leadership of the Conservative Party of Canada, will remain as mayor of Brampton. He had nearly 60% of the votes at the time these lines were written. His main opponent, former municipal official Nikki Kaur, was fired from her post and then rehired after denouncing her boss, municipal director David Barrick, for corruption.
Near Brampton, in Vaughan, a town known for the Canada’s Wonderland amusement park, former Ontario Liberal Party leader Steven Del Duca is in a close contest with city councilor Sandra Yeung Racco. The former chief tendered his resignation following the provincial election in November. He had failed to get elected in his own riding in Vaughan.
This report is supported by the Initiative de local journalismfunded by the Government of Canada.