politics Joe Cressy Running for Council in Trinity-Spadina (Ward 20)

After losing the Trinity-Spadina federal by-election to former councillor Adam Vaughan, Cressy will make a bid for Vaughan's old municipal office instead.

Earlier this summer, Joe Cressy—social activist, NDP stalwart, and 2011 campaign chair for Olivia Chow—ran to replace Chow as the NDP MP for Trinity-Spadina. (That by-election was triggered when Chow stepped down to run for mayor.) His opponent in that race was Ward 20 city councillor Adam Vaughan; Ward 20 (also called Trinity-Spadina) covers much of the same terrain as the federal parliamentary seat. Vaughan won the federal by-election, and in a game of political musical chairs, Cressy announced this morning that he is running to replace Vaughan as the Ward 20 municipal councillor.

“I’m running for city council because real change takes place in our neighbourhoods and at City Hall,” Cressy said in a press conference outside City Hall. “Together, we can build a city that tackles the big issues of transit, poverty and inequality, and the environment.”

Asked about his future intentions during today’s presser—and specifically, whether his run for municipal office was simply a bid to stay busy until the next scheduled federal election in 2015 (when he could try to challenge Vaughan again) Cressy commented: “I will not be running in a federal election in a year.”

Trinity-Spadina By-election Candidates: Joe Cressy of the New Democratic Party