Not everyone was a critic, but no one was a fan.

When the Star contacted 70 civic leaders, across the political spectrum, and asked them to comment on Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s fitness for office, none — not a single one — would publicly defend him.

It’s telling that the man who insists he is the best mayor Toronto ever had and who claims to have averted financial disaster, created thousands of jobs, and turned this city into an economic powerhouse, managed to garner not one word of support from prominent people in a position to judge his record.

Of course, everyone knows Ford’s other record: his drunk driving, crack cocaine smoking, mindless drunken binges, his associating with criminals, and buying illegal drugs while on office — and that’s just the stuff he has admitted. The entire world has heard of that, and laughed at the ridiculous antics perpetrated by this hopelessly flawed character, to the detriment of Canada’s largest city.

That’s why more than a third of 70 Toronto “movers and shakers” contacted by the Star either wanted to see Ford gone or, in some other way, expressed concern about his conduct. It’s regrettable that even more didn’t come forward to openly condemn Ford for his obvious abuses.

Part of that is explained by the requirement, imposed on people in some official positions, to remain strictly neutral in political matters. But given the Ford administration’s pattern of ruthlessly attacking critics — even to the point of lies and character assassination — it’s fair to assume that some potential respondents were cowed into silence by fear.

The informal survey came after Torstar chair John Honderich noted in a column in December the lamentable lack of outrage on the part of Toronto elites in response to Ford’s excesses. “The collective silence has been deafening,” he wrote.

As reported by the Star’s Marco Chown Oved, a total of 51 replied. Of those, 21 declined comment, 26 either called on Ford to resign or otherwise indicated concern over the mayor’s antics, and four took a neutral stance, neither attacking nor defending Ford.

In the end, a responsible contingent was willing to speak out despite the Ford administration’s history of brutal bullying and unprincipled attacks. And no one — not one — was willing to excuse the despicable record of this mayor.

That is to the good. But it would be even better if this silent elite found its voice and did more to hold Ford to account before the Oct. 27 election.