The politics of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada involve the election of representatives to the federal, provincial, and municipal levels of government. A total of 25 Members of Parliament (MPs) representing Toronto sit in the House of Commons of Canada in Ottawa (the federal capital), and another 25 Members of Ontario's Provincial Parliament (MPPs) sit in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario at Queen's Park, in Toronto. Being Ontario's capital, many provincial offices are located in the city.
In terms of electoral politics, Toronto had been an important source of support for the federal Liberal Party of Canada and the provincial Ontario Liberal Party although the downtown area tends to support the New Democratic Party (NDP). The federal Conservative Party and the provincial Progressive Conservative Party have historically been weaker in the city, but some right-leaning Liberals come from Toronto ridings.
In the past, the Liberals usually dominated the inner portions of the city federally, and the outer portions were split between the Liberals and Progressive Conservatives. However, the Liberals swept every seat in Toronto from 1993 to 2004, when former city councillor and NDP leader Jack Layton won a downtown riding. The NDP won two more seats in 2006 but lost one in 2008. In the 2011 federal election, Toronto sent nine Conservative MPs to Ottawa, eight NDP MPs, and six Liberal MPs, the first time that a centre-right party had won seats in Toronto since 1988. However, in 2015, the Liberals swept every seat in Toronto.
Large parts of Toronto, mainly its outer portions, supported the right-wing government of Mike Harris during the 1995 and 1999 Ontario elections. However, largely as a result of amalgamating Metro Toronto municipalities against the wishes of three quarters of voters in a municipal plebiscite, as well as of the downloading of responsibility for costly services onto the city, the Conservatives were shut of Toronto in provincial elections from 2003 to 2013, when they won a byelection.
The businessman and politician Mel Lastman was the first mayor of the newly-amalgamated City of Toronto and the 62nd mayor of Toronto after he won the 1997 and was re-elected in 2000.[1] The centre-leftist David Miller was elected as Toronto's 63rd mayor in December 2003 and was re-elected in November 2006 with nearly 60% of the popular vote with a mandate to make Toronto a city of prosperity, livability, and opportunity for all.[2] Miller declined to run in the following election and a conservative ally, Rob Ford, won the 2010 election handily. Three years later, however, Ford's tumultuous reign and admission to smoking crack, as well as other indiscretions that attracted unwanted international media attention, led City Council to remove many of his powers and much of his office's budget. In the following election, Ford was forced to drop out because of treatment for pleomorphic liposarcoma, a rare form of cancer.[3] The mayoral election was won by John Tory, a lawyer and a former a talk show host, businessman, Member of Provincial Parliament, and Leader of the Official Opposition at Queen's Park. Among Tory's top priorities are tackling transit and traffic congestion.[4]
The Stronger City of Toronto for a Stronger Ontario Act, 2006 (Bill 53) was enacted by the Legislative Assembly of Ontario on June 12, 2006. The provincial law changed the city's legal powers and responsibilities.
Toronto is represented by 25 MPs.
| Riding | Pic | Name | Party | Prior Experience | Education | Assumed Office | Born In | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lawyer | Queen's University (BA; JD)University of Oxford (BCL) | 2015 | 1984 | |||||
| Julie Dzerowicz | Liberal | Director of Strategic Planning and Communications at the Bank of Montreal | McGill University (B.Comm.)University of British Columbia (MBA) | 2015 | ||||
| Michael Coteau | Liberal | Educator & Businessman | Carleton University | 2021 | 1972 | |||
| Liberal | United Church ministerCEO of the Asthma Society of Canada | University of Toronto (B.Comm) Vancouver School of Theology (M.Div.) Chicago Theological Seminary (D.Min.) | 2015 | 1956 | ||||
| Han Dong (politician) | Liberal | Businessman | 2019 | 1977 | ||||
| Liberal | Lawyer Adjunct Professor at Osgoode Hall Law School | Carleton University (BA) University of Windsor (LL.B.) | 2015 | 1973 | ||||
| Yvan Baker | Liberal | Management Consultant | Schulich School of Business (BBA) Tuck School of Business (MBA) | 2019 | 1977 | |||
| Liberal | Lawyer | Bishop's University (BA) University of Windsor (LL.B.) University of Wales (BCL) | 2015 | |||||
| Liberal | University of Edinburgh (PhD) | 2008 | 1966 | |||||
| Liberal | University of Toronto (BA, JD) | 1999 | 1944 | |||||
| Liberal | Lawyer | McGill University (BA) | 2015 | 1971 | ||||
| Liberal | 2017 | |||||||
| Liberal | University of London (Masters of Educational Management and Administration)Quaid-i-Azam University (MBA) | 2011 | 1966 | |||||
| Liberal | University of Toronto (BA) | 1997 | 1948 | |||||
| Liberal | 2015 | 1980 | ||||||
| Liberal | Real Estate Broker and Lawyer | Carleton University (BA) and Osgoode Hall Law School (LL.B.) | 2015 | |||||
| Liberal | Toronto Police Chief | 2015 | 1954 | |||||
| Kevin Vuong | Independent | 2021 | ||||||
| Liberal | Media Personality | Ryerson University (BA) | 2021 | 1968 | ||||
| Liberal | Lawyer | 2015 | 1971 | |||||
| Financial Professional | Queen's University (MBA) | 2024 | Unknown | |||||
| Liberal | 2015 | 1968 | ||||||
| Liberal | Lawyer, International Law Executive of the Ontario Bar Association | University of Toronto (BA) London School of Economics (M.Sc) Osgoode Hall Law School (LL.B) Georgetown University (LL.M) | 2015 | 1970 | ||||
| Ya'ara Saks | Liberal | former director of Trauma Practice for Healthy Communities | McGill UniversityHebrew University of Jerusalem | 2020 | 1973 | |||
| Liberal | 2015 | 1976 | ||||||
Toronto is represented by 25 MPPs.
| Riding | Name | Party | Prior Experience | Education | Assumed Office | Born In | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Author Researcher Professor at University of Toronto | Johns Hopkins University (MA) Aberystwyth University (PhD) | 2018 | ||||||
| NDP | Non-profit director Trustee for the Toronto District School Board President of the federal New Democratic Party | 2018 | 1969 | |||||
| Carleton University (BA) | 2014 | 1965 | ||||||
| Liberal | Toronto Board of Education | Queen's University (BA)University of Toronto (MA) | 2003 | 1953 | ||||
| Electrical Engineer | 2018 | |||||||
| Progressive Conservative | Lawyer | University of Guelph (B.Comm) | 2018 | |||||
| Progressive Conservative | 2018 | |||||||
| Progressive Conservative | Chief of Staff to John Tory Director of Events for the Toronto Board of Trade Government Relations Manager for the Canadian Automobile Association | Lake Superior State University (BSc) | 2018 | |||||
| Progressive Conservative | Toronto City Council | 2018 | 1964 | |||||
| NDP | Executive Assistant to Anthony Perruzza | 2018 | ||||||
| NDP | Epidemiologist Public Health Researcher Executive Assistant to Cheri DiNovo | University of British Columbia (BSc) University of Toronto (MPH) University (PhD candidate) | 2018 | |||||
| Progressive Conservative | Citizenship Judge | 2018 | ||||||
| Progressive Conservative | 2018 | |||||||
| Liberal | CEO of Greater Toronto CivicAction Alliance CAO of Toronto Community HousingVice-President of Goodwill Industries (Toronto) | University of Toronto (BA)Rotman School of Management (MBA) | 2013 | 1968 | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Social WorkerToronto City Council Chairman of the Toronto Zoo | University of Toronto (MSW, PhD) | 2016 | 1936 | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Financial Advisor | 2018 | 1989 | |||||
| NDP | Co-Chair of the Scarborough Health Coalition Vice-Chair of Warden Woods Community Centre Research Analyst | University of Toronto (BA) University College London (Master of Development, Administration & Planning) | 2018 | 1989 | ||||
| NDP | Adjunct Professor at York University | 2018 | 1961 | |||||
| NDP | Communications Consultant Public Relations | University of Guelph (B.A.A.) | 2018 | |||||
| NDP | Toronto City Council | York University (BA) | 2006 | 1951 | ||||
| NDP | Public Speaker Activist Owner of Glad Day Bookshop | 2018 | ||||||
| Jessica Bell | NDP | Community Organizer Lecturer at Ryerson University Director of the California Food & Justice Coalition Activist Executive Director of TTCriders | 2018 | |||||
| Progressive Conservative | Real Estate broker Auditor | 2018 | ||||||
| Progressive Conservative | Civil and commercial litigation lawyer | York University (BA) University of Western Ontario (LL.B.) | 2018 | |||||
| NDP | Broadcaster Author | 2018 | ||||||