Rob Ford will have strong competitors in the Toronto municipal election later this year. Olivia Chow will be tough to beat, but is she really a good fit?

He said he’d run again to be Toronto’s mayor. But Rob Ford will have strong competitors in the municipal election coming up later this year. Olivia Chow’s political pedigree and experience will be tough to beat, but is she really a good fit for Toronto?

Toronto’s political heavyweight, Olivia Chow

So who is she? She’s quite the opposite of Rob Ford actually. As a former member of the Canadian parliament, she started her career after being elected in 1985 as a school trustee. With about 30 years experience, her support already runs deep, particularly in more central parts of the city. Her husband (now deceased) was Canada’s former leader of the Opposition (New Democratic Party) and the most popular Canadian public figure of his time. The party’s popularity, particularly in Toronto’s central area, has consistently contributed a large share of the party’s voting base. And Olivia Chow is a big reason for that. Immigrating from Hong Kong at a young age, her story resembles so many in Toronto. A city where more than 140 languages are spoken and one which some consider the most multicultural city in the world. In 2006, she was elected as a federal member of parliament, unseating a candidate from the Liberal party of Canada. A party that had traditional dominated the political scene of that area.



Can she make an impact in Toronto?

During her career, she has managed to gain experience at the local level as a city councillor. But Toronto is a tricky city when it comes to jurisdiction. With so many overlapping regions, municipalities, and provincial authorities, Chow’s liberal policy focus could be a challenge. Particularly with so many of the jurisdictional overlap being controlled by conservative voting bases in the more suburban areas.

Should she win the next election, her ability to accomplish anything of significance may be tied to the Liberal party’s ability to remain popular at the provincial level. A party that has some level of similar policy objectives for the Greater Toronto Area.

Her focus

Like every mayoral candidate, traffic and public transit is one of her focuses. She recently promised to increase bus service by 10%. This would include $15 million of spending on high volume routes. $15 million does not amount to much in the infrastructure world. An interchange can cost a minimum of $25 million. Still, picking bus transit as a campaign focus could be a smart thing. Many cities are recognizing the vast capital costs of subways and light-rail systems. Toronto falls behind other cities of its size when it comes to subway provision. But places like Istanbul, Mexico City, Bogota, and Shanghai have really taken advantage of much cheaper bus rapid transit (BRT) improvements. She said she intends to “mind the public purse” and BRT has proven to be an economical approach to transit.

Wait and see

She has been honest to acknowledge her limited understanding of some municipal issues in Toronto. But how can one not be intrigued by her accomplishments and positions to date. She may not have the status of a Michael Bloomberg. Nor would she have the same level of power as an American mayor if elected. But in light of the international attention generated by Toronto City Hall over the past few years, perhaps a dose of class will reap benefits. Benefits independent of what is actually accomplished in reality by the next mayor. If she is elected, perhaps Chow’s grace at the helm will bring more than just a better reputation. Maybe it will help guide a broken political system to fix some major problems facing the city. We’ll see.

VIDEO – Interview with Toronto Mayoral candidate, Olivia Chow

[Sources / Literature: CBC, National Post, Oliviachow.ca, Reuters, City of Toronto]