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Mayor Rob Ford set his alarm “early” on Thursday, donned a blue pinstripe suit that may have been new or may have been lent to him by his brother, and was first in line, leaning up against a wall in a city hall corridor, when a voice called out at 8:30 a.m.

“The elections office is open and we’re taking nominations,” a man announced to the crush of reporters and cameras surrounding the chief magistrate.

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And with that, Toronto’s 2014 election campaign, a gruelling 10-month battle of stamina, personality and political calculus, is underway.

Voters head to the ballot box on October 27. By registering, candidates can start to raise money and officially campaign, although Rob Ford has never really stopped campaigning. He pulled out a wad of crisp twenty dollar bills from his left breast pocket to pay his $200 registration with his brother and campaign manager, Doug Ford, by his side. Then he declared himself the “best mayor that this city has ever had.”