news Municipal Election 2010: Live



Photo by Eric Yip/Torontoist.



As the results come in we’ll be providing updates from key campaigns, announcing winners as they are declared, and trying to understand what it all means. For minute-by-minute updates on all the council and TDSB races head over to our politics hub and click on the map to find out more about a specific ward. For full election results, click right here.

10:55 PM: With 1,864 out of 1,870 polls reporting, as of right now, Rob Ford has 47.10% of the vote (380,201), George Smitherman has 35.60% (287,393), and Joe Pantalone has 11.75% (94,840). Voter turnout is at 52.19%, a figure that’ll only go up as the last few polls submit their results; in 2006, that was only 39.3%. Most, but not all, ward races have settled. You can see the full election results for the mayor’s race and for every ward, which’ll keep being updated minute-by-minute until every vote is counted, here.

For now, though, we’re going to call it a night, and make our way to the election night party that we’re hosting with ArtsVote. There’s a lot to think about, and a lot to talk about, and we’ll be doing lots of that in the days ahead. DT



10:48 PM: …and here is George Smitherman, delivering his concession speech earlier tonight, new adopted son in tow:





Photo by Dean Bradley/Torontoist.



10:44 PM: Toronto, meet your next mayor:







Photos by Christopher Drost/Torontoist.

10:19 PM: Another tight contest: in Ward 27, with 85/87 polls reporting, Kristyn Wong-Tam is leading Ken Chan just over four hundred votes. HD

10:16 PM: Robinson defeats another incumbent, Cliff Jenkins, by about five hundred votes. HD

10:14 PM: The Ward 9 race is right now too close to call, with 29/30 polls reporting Maria Augimeri is just twenty-three votes ahead of Gus Cusimano. HD

10:13 PM: Lindsay Luby just barely squeaks by, with only 309 votes separating her from second-place finisher John Campbell. HD

10:04 PM: More from Joe Mihevc: “I think it’s a good moment to be worried about the future of this city tonight, so I think it’s important to drink a lot of beer tonight, but we’re going to have lots of meetings, we’re going to invite the world in, to figure out this thing that just wants to tear Toronto down, and figure out how not to let it tear us down.” ABB

10:00 PM: Shouts from the crowd during Ford’s speech: “Where’s the billion dollars?” “22!” “Yeah, it’s about time.” “You’re the man, Robbie!” ES

9:56 PM: More words of wisdom, these from Martin Luther King Jr. via reelected progressive councillor Joe Mihevc (Ward 21): “the arc of history is long, but it bends towards justice.” ABB

9:54 PM: Ford wishing his competitors well, thanking them for their contributions. Says it is essential to protect the services Torontonians depend on, his words punctuated by the tooting of train whistles. HD

9:53 PM: Over at the Hungarian House, defeated Ward 17 candidate Jonah Schein says: “Let’s rest our feet, and let’s get ready to keep walking.” ABB

9:52 PM: Ford: “This victory is a clear call from tax payers: ‘enough is enough’… Tonight the city of Toronto is not divided. We are united.” HD

9:49 PM: “This is not just my victory. This is a victory for every person who lives and works in this great city of Toronto,” says Rob Ford. And then, of course, “we’re going to put an end to the gravy train.” HD

9:48 PM: With a few polls still to report, we’re at 49% turnout, almost 10% higher than last year. Silver linings. HD

9:40 PM: Rob Ford preparing to give his victory speech. With 1,828/1,870 polls reporting, he has 47% support to Smitherman’s 35%—a bigger margin than almost everyone anticipated. HD

9:38 PM: Mike Harris gets interviewed by CP24 from Rob Ford’s party, and is identified by the TV reporter as the “former Premier of Toronto.” There’s something to work into your nightmares tonight. DT

9:38 PM: The scene at the Joe Pantalone/Mike Layton party at Revival earlier this evening:









Photos by Andrew Louis/Torontoist.



9:37 PM: Anthony Perruzza gets a clear (though not huge) win over bitter foe Peter Li Preti in Ward 8.HD

9:34 PM: Some thoughts from the reelected Joe Mihevc (Ward 21): “Who lost? Sandra Bussin lost, Adrian Heaps lost. That’s it on the progressive liberal side of things. Mary Fragedakis won, Sarah Doucette won…a number of conservatives lost, some to other conservatives, some to progressive candidates.” As for the way forward in a Ford City Hall, “it’s going to take a while for the dust to settle, and for us to figure this out.” ABB

9:28 PM: Meatier food for thought, now with 1,821 out of 1,870 polls reporting: Rob Ford = 47.09%. George Smitherman + Joe Pantalone = 47.39%. DT

9:28 PM: Pantalone, speaking with CP24, says that he doesn’t know what’ll come next for him. He goes on: “All I know is that I love Toronto.”HD

9:25 PM: The extent of Bussin’s defeat in Ward 32 is astonishing: with 37/38 polls reporting, she’s garnered 26% of the vote compared to McMahon’s 65%. HD

9:20 PM: From the Ford party: Smitherman’s concession speech is playing. Some boos and shouting when he referred to his son and husband.ES

9:18 PM: Food for thought, with 1,798 out of 1,870 polls reporting. Rob Ford = 47.39%. George Smitherman + Joe Pantalone = 47.07% DT

9:17 PM: Smitherman holding his son, husband by his side, just finished speaking. Emphasizes that the city needs a mayor who can pull together council. Overall his speech is generous and calm. HD

9:14 PM: The scene at Ford’s party tonight:













Photos by Christopher Drost/Torontoist.



9:13 PM: The mood is dark at Hungarian House, where Jonah Schein’s loss to Cesar Palacio [for councillor in Ward 17]…and co-hosting incumbent Joe Mihevc’s win in neighbouring Ward 21 are all being overshadowed by Ford’s win. A roomful of scowling, older lefties just abandoned the TV, tuned to CP24, for the cash bar. Smiling Mihevc is reassuring supporters, a few at a time.ABB

9:10 PM: Smitherman thanking his “purple army,” and campaign manager Bruce Davis, who he calls “the guy with the hardest job in the world.” His voice is starting to waver a bit. “It is my duty to own up to the mistakes I have made, and to offer my heartfelt apologies,” to those who put their faith in him. HD

9:08 PM: Smitherman cracking jokes, “The people of Toronto have spoken, and they have sent a very clear message.” Has spoken with Ford and offered his congratulations. “As a Torontonian who loves my city, I hope for your success Rob. Toronto is too important…we love our city.” HD

9:07 PM: Smitherman about to give his concession speech. HD

9:06 PM: Matlow will replace outgoing councillor Michael Walker, and defeated Walker’s assistant, Chris Sellors, in this race. HD

9:02 PM: Voter turnout, as predicted, has gone up since 2006. With 1,798/1,870 polls reporting, turnout is 47.45%, a significant increase from last election’s 39.3%. HD

8:59 PM: From the party of victorious Ward 29 candidate Mary Fragedakis: a jubilant Peter Tabuns tells us Mary earned every vote, calling the win a step forward for Toronto. DC

8:57 PM: We endorsed Jonah Schein in Ward 17; he’s come in a strong (but not very close) second. HD

8:53 PM: Ward 10 is neck-and-neck(-and-neck-and-neck). Four leading candidates are right now within 120 votes of each other: James Pasternak, Nancy Oomen, Brian Shifman, and Igor Toutchinski. HD

8:52 PM: Other defeated incumbents: Ron Moeser, Adrian Heaps, Bill Saundercook.HD

8:48 PM: Emily Shepard is at Rob Ford’s victory party. She’s been asking his supporters if they were expecting tonight’s results. Answers: “Yes. People want a tide of change,” and “I was expecting him to win, but not by this much.” Next question: “why do you think the margin of votes was so big?” “People are fed up… I’m not saying he’s going to get better, but at least he’s going to keep honest.” ES

8:45 PM: The mood is sullen at Jane Pitfield’s headquarters, one of Fragedakis’s major opponents. Her campaign manager cites vote splitting [with third place contender Jennifer Wood] as one factor in the loss. DC

8:43 PM: Defeated Ward 32 councillor Sandra Bussin, talking to CP24: “The electorate has spoken and I accept that…I will move on and wish Ms. McMahon all the best.”HD

8:43 PM: Di Ciano defeats incumbent Peter Milczyn HD

8:35 PM: Paula Fletcher is in an unexpectedly tight race in Ward 30, with Liz West trailing her by only a few votes.HD

8:34 PM: Hundreds of people across the city are still in line waiting to vote, and expressing frustration that results have been released before they cast their ballots. HD

8:33 PM: CP24 just called Ward 26 for incumbent John Parker; Mohamed Dhanani finishes in an extremely surprising third.HD

8:32 PM: Council will now have two Fords: Rob as mayor, and brother Doug taking over Rob’s old council seat in Ward 2.HD

8:30 PM: McMahon defeats controversial incumbent Sandra Bussin. McMahon ran on a platform of environmentalism combined with fiscal restraint. HD

8:28 PM: Multiple incumbents facing defeat tonight, including several upsets we didn’t see coming. HD

8:26 PM: Mohamed Dhanani in Ward 26, billed as a strong challenger to incumbent John Parker, is currently trailing badly. Shock at his campaign party. DC

8:21 PM: The huge room at the Rob Ford rally is almost empty, but the on-screen coverage has already called the election. Supporters are blowing gravy train whistles, but it’s actually subdued given what is happening on screen. ES

8:19 PM: So far, Rob Ford is so ahead—with 1,115 out of 1,870 polls reporting, he has 50.58% to Smitherman’s 32.46% and Joe Pantalone’s 10.92%—that even if every Joe Pantalone voter voted for Smitherman instead, Rob Ford would still be Toronto’s new mayor. DT

8:15 PM: Global News is also declaring Rob Ford the winner of the mayor’s seat. So has the CBC. DT

8:13 PM: And CP24 is also repeating that Adrian Heaps, Sandra Bussin, and Bill Saundercook—among other incumbents—have all been defeated. The full results, in every ward, are right here. DT

8:08 PM: CP24 has just called the election for Rob Ford. HD

8:06 PM: Results pouring in right away. Ford taking the early lead, with just under 10% of the vote counted. HD

8:00 PM: Polls…closed! (You can still vote if you’re in line though.) HD

7:54 PM: Because of the high turnout at some polling places, we may be getting results in a bit later than expected. So long as you’re in line by 8 p.m. you must be allowed to vote; polling places with lines at 8 p.m. will be closing up shop later so that everyone in line will get the chance to cast their ballots. HD

7:32 PM: All signs are pointing to growth in voter turnout compared to the last municipal election. In addition to an 82% increase at advance polls, we’re hearing reports of long lines and swamped polling stations across the city. No matter what else happens tonight, this is a development that has us heartily cheering. In 2006, 39.3% of eligible Torontonians cast ballots. HD

7:20 PM: In keeping with his gravy train–laden campaign rhetoric, if you go to Rob Ford’s election party tonight you’ll be getting a wooden train whistle as you come in the door. Question: if you toot toot, doesn’t that make you pro-train? HD

REPORTING BY: Andre Bovee-Begun (ABB), Dean Bradley (DB), Desmond Cole (DC), Hamutal Dotan (HD), Christopher Drost (CD), Andrew Louis (AL), Emily Shepard (ES), and David Topping (DT).