Alt-right mayoral candidate’s campaign was funded largely by donors who live in Toronto’s wealthiest neighbourhoods

Meet the Wealthy Toronto Elites Who Funded White Nationalist Faith Goldy’s Campaign for Mayor

Meet the Wealthy Toronto Elites Who Funded White Nationalist Faith Goldy’s Campaign for Mayor

Faith Goldy complains her failed campaign to become the Mayor of Toronto was sabotaged by “establishment elites,” but in fact her campaign was bankrolled by donors living in some of Toronto’s wealthiest neighbourhoods.

Goldy, who was fired from Rebel Media after going on a neo-Nazi podcast in 2017, has appeared in videos reciting a white supremacist creed and endorsing a book by a 1930s fascist author advocating “the elimination of Jews.”

Although her campaign received direct support from white supremacist groups, Goldy’s recently published financial statements suggest white collar donors were bigger enablers of her far-right mayoral campaign.

Of the $79,500 Goldy’s campaign raked in during last fall’s mayoral election, a new analysis by PressProgress shows almost half that money ($37,750) came from fewer than 20 donors who made donations ranging between $1,000 and $2,500 to her campaign.

And despite complaining about “elites,” a list of addresses published in the public filings locates Goldy’s top donors in some of Toronto’s wealthiest neighbourhoods, including Lawrence Park, Yorkville and the financial district.

Goldy and many of her backers would rather not talk about these contributions.

After learning PressProgress was posing questions to some of her wealthiest donors, Goldy sent a panicked e-mail instructing her donors not to talk to journalists.

“You owe them zero answers,” Goldy wrote, telling her donors they have “no duty to respond to their solicitation.”

“The media truly are the enemy of the people,” Goldy told her donors.

But a closer look at Goldy’s financial statement shows the top donors she’s shielding include wealthy investors, real estate developers and corporate consultants who make a living outsourcing Canadian jobs:

Marvin Rubner gave $1,000 to Faith Goldy

According to City of Toronto records, one person at an upscale address in Bedford Park gave $1,000 to the far-right mayoral candidate on September 18, 2018.

An employee at YAD investments confirmed to PressProgress that the address listed on Goldy’s financial statement belongs to the company’s president, Toronto real estate developer Marvin Rubner.

Rubner was once described by the Globe and Mail as one of a small handful of private investors “who quietly dominate Canada’s real estate markets.”

According to iPolitics, Rubner also has close ties with former Prime Minister Stephen Harper, working behind-the-scenes with a small group of insiders to “woo voters in Toronto’s Bathurst Street corridor over to the Conservatives.”

Rubner did not respond to multiple requests for comment from PressProgress.

Gerald Sumner gave $1,000 to Faith Goldy

Goldy’s financial statement also lists two $500 donations from someone named Gerald Sumner.

The Yonge Street address listed in the filings is also registered to a company called Mein Digitek Inc. where federal corporate records show Sumner is currently listed as a corporate director.

According to LinkedIn, Sumner’s firm is plugged in to the global economy, working to “develop OEM contract manufacturing” for “numerous China and Korean based manufacturers.”

Sumner previously served as Executive VP of business development for Artesian Direct Holdings and as president of the Delta Marketing Group.

Earlier this year, Sumner was also listed as the director of Hard Carbon Inc. and Hard Carbon Investments, both with the same registered address.

Sumner could not be reached for comment.

Kirk Hansen gave $2,500 to Faith Goldy

Goldy’s donation records also shows she received money from someone who works to outsource Canadian jobs.

Kirk Hansen, an enterprise architect who worked for IBM and Manulife Financial, did not respond to requests for comment from PressProgress, however, the address on Goldy’s financial statement is the same as the registered corporate address of Hansen’s consulting firm.

On his website, Hansen says he “provided EA leadership for a Canadian bank” and served as an “advisor to chief outsourcing architect for large financial institution.”

Gus Koutoumanos gave $1,000 to Faith Goldy

Another name that appears on Goldy’s donor list is Gus Koutoumanos, a failed city council candidate in Toronto’s Ward 14.

Koutoumanos, who listed an address next to his mortgage brokerage, boasted about his experience as a mortgage agent and an account agent at TD bank on his campaign site.

The Goldy donor also owns Shoxs Sports Saloon in The Junction, one of Toronto’s quickly-gentrifying neighbourhoods.

Contacted by phone about his contribution, Koutoumanos first stressed that his $1,000 donation only worked out to $250 after-rebate

Asked about his motivation for donating to Goldy, Koutoumanos told PressProgress “I don’t have to answer your questions,” before hanging up.

Grace Yuhong Bi gave $1,000 to Faith Goldy

Meanwhile, Grace Yuhong Bi is still waiting for her donation receipt.

“That’s right, Faith Goldy, last year — $1,000,” the financial planner told PressProgress.

“She never sent me the receipt,” Yuhong Bi complained. “I even emailed her about the receipt she never sent me.”

After she was questioned about Goldy’s anti-immigrant and white nationalist views, Yuhong Bi rejected this description and abruptly hung up the phone.

According to the Fortune Effect Financial’s website, Yuhong Bi’s firm provides “all-encompassing financial services, including mortgage, financial planning, investment consultancy, tax and estate planning.”

The firm also says it specializes in serving “new immigrants and foreigners.”

Ronald John Elmy gave $2,000 to Faith Goldy

Goldy received two separate $1,000 donations from Ronald John Elmy, who listed an address that shares the same postal code as Ron Elmy Photography studios.

Asked about the donation by PressProgress, Elmy hung up and could not be reached again. Elmy did not respond to subsequent requests for comment by e-mail.

Elmy’s website features photos of major brands, mansions and a few celebrities, listing clients that include the Royal Bank of Canada, Scotiabank and Hydro One.

A YouTube channel listed under Elmy’s name features links to videos produced by Rebel Media as well as the white supremacist channel Red Ice TV and conspiracy theory channel Press for Truth.

Thomas Stanley gave $2,500 to Faith Goldy

Goldy also received a $2,500 donation from a man named Thomas Stanley listed under an address in Toronto’s Lawrence Park, ranked as one of the wealthiest neighbourhoods in Canada.

The listed postal code is located several blocks away from Resolute Funds Ltd, which manages a “private mutual fund” run by Toronto investor Tom Stanley, who says he lives “only a few blocks” away.

According to a Globe and Mail feature titled “Tom Almighty,” Stanley was credited with running “the best 10-year performance of any fund in North America, if not the world.”

Contacted by PressProgress, Stanley said “I am not doing interviews at this time” and ignored several subsequent e-mails and phone calls asking about donations to Goldy’s campaign.