Andray Domise steps into the lobby of a 10-storey community housing building in Toronto’s Rexdale neighbourhood, convinced he’s not wasting his time. In a few days, he will lose – badly – in his bid to win a spot on city council, an effort that attracted unprecedented attention and fundraising dollars for a first-time candidate. But on this warm afternoon in late October, so close to the end, he projects confidence and certainty. Dressed in a black overcoat and grey, striped scarf, he says the gruelling six-month campaign has him about 40 pounds lighter on his 6 foot 3 frame. There were many days he plumb forgot to eat. Domise spots a woman who appears to be in her 30s headed toward the elevator. He politely asks to speak with her but she doesn’t respond. SUBSCRIBE AND FOLLOW POLITICS Get the top stories emailed every day. Newsletters may offer personalized content or advertisements. Privacy Policy Newsletter Please enter a valid email address Thank you for signing up! You should receive an email to confirm your subscription shortly. There was a problem processing your signup; please try again later Twitter

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Flipboard “Excuse me,” he says. “Have you made up your mind about who you will vote for?” “Yep. Ford,” she replies. “Is there anything I can do to change your mind?” he wonders. “Nope. Ford.” The elevator arrives and she gets on, but leaves a foot on the floor to keep the doors from closing. Domise makes his pitch. He shares what he views as the biggest issues in this community: poor transit options, a dearth of youth programs, not enough affordable childcare or development, social needs left unaddressed. All problems about which he wants to do something. All problems she says aren’t “Ford’s fault.” Unprompted, she tells him there were many times in her life when she was an abused woman and that Ford has “been there.” She says he even helped her land a new apartment in a pinch. “Quick time.” Domise says she doesn’t have to make a decision now but hopes she will at least take his literature. She accepts his glossy pamphlet, says she’ll read it. The door closes. It’s not clear if the Ford she was lauding was Rob or Doug. Maybe, in these parts, it doesn’t matter.

It’s said there’s a barrier to entry in politics, as if it’s a club made to seem cooler by the people waiting outside. For some, though, it can feel like a spot is saved. That somewhere inside, a seat is being kept perpetually warm. It’s a game where money matters. Connections matter. One wants to believe talent matters. And last names certainly matter, especially at the municipal level where established brands can dwarf the unknowns. Here in Etobicoke’s Ward 2, primarily west of the Humber River and north of Highway 401, last names might mean everything. This is the heart of the so-called Ford Nation. And this is where Andray Domise wants to make his start. Domise grew up not far from here on John Garland Blvd. and Martin Grove Road. He was mostly raised by a single mom who immigrated from Jamaica in search of a better life soon found. His biological father isn’t in the picture. The last name Domise carries belongs to his mother. He doesn’t know how he caught the political bug, just that it’s always been there. As a kid, he would stay up late to watch election results and think about things like the Meech Lake Accord when nobody else his age cared about that stuff. He says he loved policy, how things are put together. He wasn’t on students’ council or model UN, always viewing those kinds of activities as punching above his weight. Still, Domise studied political science at the University of Windsor and wrote opinion pieces for the student newspaper. He had to quit school after it became too much to balance coursework with the three part-time jobs he needed to make tuition. One of those gigs was a nightclub bouncer where he decided who got in, who didn’t. He completed his degree through distance studies two years ago. Domise says he decided to run because he understands this part of Canada’s largest city and earnestly believes it has been neglected for years. The most recent census statistics will tell you that about 55,000 Torontonians call this place home. The average household income is $72,000 – or about 17 per cent less than the rest of the city. Fifty-four per cent of residents here were born outside of Canada, with about nine per cent coming from India, four per cent from Italy, and three per cent from Jamaica. The area is mostly industrial but includes part of Rexdale, a neighbourhood working to move beyond a reputation for violence and poverty. It also contains the six Dixon Road apartment buildings made famous by the pre-dawn Project Traveller raids in June, 2013, that saw dozens arrested on charges related to drugs, gangs, and guns. Those raids would eventually spur the discovery of a video showing the mayor smoking crack. According to a 2012 report by Social Planning Toronto, more than 24 per cent of people in Ward 2 live in poverty. “Youth drop out of school at higher rates than in other areas of Toronto and, unable to find work, may drift into gang-related and criminal activity,” the report reads. Yet, the ward also includes the Woodbine racetrack and residential subdivisions, some of which boast million-dollar suburban homes. And for decades now, one last name has been golden out here.