The 1997 Toronto municipal election was the first election held for offices in the amalgamated "megacity" of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The elections were administered by the old City of Toronto and its five suburbs within Metropolitan Toronto. The vote was held November 10, 1997, electing the mayor and 56 councillors in 28 wards who took office on January 1, 1998, the day of the amalgamation.
The election resulted in a showdown between two incumbent mayors of cities being dissolved into the megacity: Barbara Hall, the one-term mayor of the old city of Toronto, and Mel Lastman, who had been mayor of the suburban city North York for 25 years. Both candidates were independent, but Hall was a prior member of the left-of-centre New Democratic Party and Lastman of the right-of-centre Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario. Lastman was additionally well-known as pitchman for his family-owned Bad Boy furniture and appliance stores.
Mayor The mayoral race saw incumbents from the two largest former cities run to be mayor, the left-leaning Barbara Hall and the right-leaning Mel Lastman. Lastman won the election by a narrow margin, around 40,000 votes.
+ Election for Mayor, City of Toronto, 1926 of 1926 Polls Reporting Candidate Total votes % of total votes Mel Lastman 387,84851.92% Barbara Hall 346,45246.38% Don Andrews 1,985 0.26% Ben Kerr 1,6700.22% William Burrill 1,4210.19% Steve Markle 1,244 0.16% C. Edwards 1,214 0.12% Munyonzwe Hamalengwa 1,124 0.15% Hazel Jackson 1,062 0.14% Alan Heisey, Sr. 994 0.13% Hans Bathija 869 0.11% Karl Hille 695 0.09% Santa Cuda 647 0.08% Laurence M. Honickman 6100.08% Joanne Pritchard 5520.07% George Dowar 4620.06% Jeffery Sharpe 3790.05% Ernest Michaud 2810.03% Michael Houlton-Charette 2110.02% Duri Naimji 1770.02% Totals 746,897 100%
Council
The election followed a plurality-at-large voting system where electors could vote for two candidates. Each of the 28 wards elected two councillors.
Ward 1 – East York Michael Prue – 22440 Case Ootes – 8608 Jane Pitfield – 6926 Michael Tziretas – 6349 Elizabeth Rowley – 5707 Bob Dale – 4709 George Vasilopoulos – 4275 Paul Fernandes – 3156 Paul Robinson – 2885 Hortencia Fotopoulos – 663 Edward Wigglesworth – 368
Ward 2 – Lakeshore Queensway Irene Jones – 9387 Blake Kinahan – 7788 Peter Milczyn – 7127 Jeff Knoll – 6877 Connie Micallef – 5179 Diethar Lein – 4396 David Smith – 2286 Joe Connell – 713 George Kash – 409
Ward 3 – Kingsway Humber Gloria Lindsay Luby – 13123 Mario Giansante – 12767 Dennis Flynn – 10092 Rob Ford – 9366 Adam Slobodian – 797 Ben Cachola – 753
Ward 4 – Markland Centennial Doug Holyday – 15430 Dick O'Brien – 10410 Agnes Ugolini Potts – 9650 Brian Flynn – 6809 Steve Deighton – 3974 Helen Bodanis – 799 Mark Stanisz – 507 Daphne Gabriel – 413 Alexander P. Masur – 279
Ward 5 – Rexdale Thistletown Elizabeth Brown – 6546 Bruce Sinclair – 6482 Vincent Crisanti – 3540 John Kiru – 3203 Marco Luciani – 2847 Carmela Sasso – 2244 Brian Ineson – 2135 Nicolo Fortunato – 1925 Peter Kell – 1240 Anthony Caputo – 1133 Patrick McCool – 1045 Rosemarie Mulhall – 413
Ward 6 – North York Humber Judy Sgro – 14334 George Mammoliti – 10226 Gina Serverino – 6875 Tony Marzilli – 5205 Bob Churchhill – 5012 Michael Marson – 722
Ward 7 – Black Creek
Anna Stella is a longtime community activist in the Black Creek area of Toronto. She applied to replace Anthony Perruzza as North York's fifth ward councillor in 1990, after Perruzza was elected to the provincial legislature and council decided to nominate an interim replacement rather than hold a by-election. She was turned down in favour of Claudio Polsinelli.Stan Josey, "Ex-North York councillors join race for vacant seat", Toronto Star, October 14, 1990, A3. Stella was later elected to the Metro Toronto Separate School Board in the 1994 municipal election, easily defeating four other candidates in Ward Twelve. She supported greater parental involvement in school affairs and a zero-tolerance policy toward violence, although she opposed Scarborough's policy of expulsion.Nicolaas Van Rijn and Colleen Pollreis, "Trustees -Separate School Board", Toronto Star, November 10, 1994, E8. In the 1997 election, she was endorsed by Art Eggleton and Annamarie Castrilli.Paul Moloney and Bruce DeMara, "Megacity race a game of musical chairs", Toronto Star, September 1, 1997, A6. Jeanelle Julien was a first-time candidate.
Ward 8 – North York Spadina
Henry Braverman was a first-time candidate. Nickeisha Hudson was a student trustee in 1997, and was awarded a Harry Jerome Award for leadership.Young citizens to be polled on megacity , The Varsity, February 25, 1997; Nicolaas Van Rijn, "Ballerina knows what it's like to be different", Toronto Star, March 30, 1997, A7. She was a first-time candidate. In 1999, she was a youth events coordinator in Hamilton.Hamida Ghafour, "Racial harmony rocks at street kids' music fest", Hamilton Spectator, August 16, 1999, A5. Dzeko is a businessman in Toronto.City of Toronto, Minutes of the Meeting of the North York Community Council, 14 September 1999; City of Toronto, Consolidated Clause in Toronto North Community Council Report 5, considered June 22, 23 and 24, 2004. He was a first-time candidate.
Ward 9 – North York Centre South Joanne Flint – 16447 Milton Berger – 12370 Dick Chapman – 8484 Stuart Ian Weinstein – 3740
Ward 10 – North York Centre John Filion – 17533 Norman Gardner – 15135 Ron Summers – 11212
Ward 11 – Don Parkway Gordon Chong – 11961 Denzil Minnan-Wong – 11001 Don Yuill – 10450 Kim Scott – 4742 Allen Scott – 4369 Janaki Bala-Krishan – 2901 Neil Milson – 684 Christopher M. Beale – 653 Dixon Rhamadeen – 380
Ward 12 – Seneca Heights Joan King – 18471 David Shiner – 18319 Raffi Assadourian – 5151 Joel Ginsberg – 3345 Bernadette Michael – 2938
Ward 13 – Scarborough Bluffs Brian Ashton – 15528 Gerry Altobello – 12605 Fred Johnston – 11265 Gaye Dale – 6491 Karin Eaton – 4670 Ed Green – 931
Ward 14 – Scarborough Wexford Norm Kelly – 13740 Mike Tzekas – 12318 Aris Babikian – 3644 Gerry Leonard – 2366 George Pornaras – 2024
Ward 15 – Scarborough City Centre Brad Duguid – 15686 Lorenzo Berardinetti – 14179 Paul Mushinski – 9141 Betty Hackett – 4579 Russell Worrick – 3882 Ron Hartung – 743
Ward 16 – Scarborough Highland Creek Frank Faubert – 15062 Ron Moeser – 13955 David Soknacki – 12183 Chris Braney – 7142
Ward 17 – Scarborough Agincourt Sherene Shaw – 10634 Doug Mahood – 9861 Wayne Cook – 5631 Jeff Mark – 4909 Doug Hum – 4645
Ward 18 – Scarborough Malvern Raymond Cho – 11190 Bas Balkissoon – 10745 Edith Montgomery – 10659 Jim Mackey – 2621 Terry Singh – 1812 Sinna Chelliah – 1165 Jasmine Singh – 871 Arlanna Lewis – 666 George B. Singh – 339
Ward 19 – High Park
Connie Dejak is a longtime administrator at Runnymede Chronic Care Hospital. As of 2006, she is the hospital's president and chief executive officer.Stasia Evasuk, "Runneymede hospital home to 114", Toronto Star, August 12, 1989, F6; "Converted school turned hospital hosting reunion" [press release], Canada NewsWire, October 12, 1990, 12:57 report; "McGuinty Government's Infrastructure Investments Building Opportunity For Ontarians" [press release], Canada NewsWire, October 10, 2006, 10:09 report. When a reviewing committee appointed by the Mike Harris provincial government decided to close Runnymede in 1997, she organized the hospital's successful challenge against the decision.Nicolaas Van Rijn, "Chiefs, staff 'devastated' as axe falls", Toronto Star, March 7, 1997, A10; Theresa Boyle and Rita Daly, "Witmer gives reprieve to 3 Toronto hospitals", Toronto Star, December 16, 1999, 1. Dejak is also a community activist, and has served on a police liaison committee for her neighbourhood.Leslie Ferenc, "Liquor licences fuelling trendy west-end boom", Toronto Star, July 18, 1994, E1. She and David Miller were endorsed by the Toronto Star newspaper in the 1997 campaign."High Park", Toronto Star, November 1, 1997, 1. She later sought an appointment to the Toronto Police Serves Board in 1999, but was passed over in favour of Alan Heisey.John Duncanson, "Hot race for police board spot", Toronto Star, January 16, 2001, 1. In the 2003 mayoral contest, she supported John Nunziata.Vanessa Lu, "Women won't get this vote", Toronto Star, October 7, 2003, A1. Dejak is a member of the Liberal Party, and there are reports that she considered running for the party in a 2006 provincial by-election in Parkdale—High Park.Robert Benzie, "Kennedy departure may spark shuffle", Toronto Star, April 7, 2006, A12. Ed Hooven has a PhD in Sociology, and is currently an assistant professor at York University. His formal biographical sketch indicates that his past works have focused on European integration, the post-war Japanese economy and North American free trade agreements. His current work focused on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and "judicial activism".Ed Hooven, Academic Biography , York University, accessed October 24, 2006. He has contributed a chapter to "Canada and the New Economic Order", entitled "The New World Order: In a New Millennium".Canada and the New World Economic Order, 2e, press release, Captus Press Catalogue, accessed October 24, 2006. Hooven has called for governments to distinguish between the "deserving" and "undeserving" when determining policies on social assistance.Ed Hooven, "Society must sort out deserving from undeserving" [letter], Toronto Star, F3. He has written against multiculturalism and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as leading to "creeping moral relativism", and has also criticized the powers of the Canadian judiciary.Ed Hooven, "Quebec judge's ruling" [letter], Globe and Mail, February 2, 1998, A14. He has accused feminists of seeking to destroy the nuclear family.Ed Hooven, "Dangerous liaisons" [letter], Globe and Mail, June 11, 1998, A20. Hooven has been active with the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, and was research director for the Republican candidate for governor in the 1998 New Hampshire state elections.Ed Hooven, "We Don't Need Psychobabble to Understand the Shootings in Colorado", reprinted by the Canadian Conservative forum, accessed October 24, 2006. He is a member of Republicans Abroad Canada.Helen Branswell, "Word that Canadians felt ...", Canadian Press, September 21, 2001, 18:32 report. He also plays guitar in the Mississauga Big Band Ensemble.Geoff Chapman, "Big Band ensemble puts Mississauga on the map", Toronto Star, December 26, 1993, E12.