The election is over and Toronto can now do what it always does: wait to see how the new federal government helps this great city in the months ahead.

Should you hold your breath? No, not unless you have David Blaine DNA.

But, first, congratulations to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Liberal posse for somehow squeezing multiple scandals into a Chrétien-style chokehold and getting the electorate to thumbs-up a second term, which is like Hollywood green-lighting a sequel to Reefer Madness in 1936. Granted, Trudeau’s majority now appears to be headed for a minority. That’s like going from limo service to Uber Pool. But if the Liberals play nice with other party riders in Parliament, who knows, maybe they can reach their stated policy destinations: issue by issue, region by region, debate by debate.

A minority government is like a three-legged coffee table: it can be surprisingly stable until someone decides to smash an elbow down on that unsupported corner.

At the very least, Monday’s results prove modern Canadian controversies are a shadow of what they used to be. After Trudeau eked out a second win, no future historian will have the stones to shoehorn “SNC-Lavalin” or “blackface” into the same taxidermy as, say, the Pacific Scandal, Tunagate, Airbus, Shawinigate, Sponsorship, or my personal favourite, Pierre Trudeau’s “Fuddle-Duddle” Incident.

The morning after a general election in Canada is always a strange feeling for a Torontonian. You educated yourself on the platforms and the promises. You analyzed what was happening nationally and internationally. You dutifully shunned Netflix for CTV and CBC. You thought long and hard about the forces tearing the world asunder and then queued in a line on a Monday to get your democracy on.

And then the votes are tallied and all you can do is … wait.

The problem for Toronto, over the last half-century, is that Hogtown problems can never compete for priority along the filthy Ottawa trough. It just never happens. Toronto is the A-student that quietly turns in its work in a homeroom overrun with class clowns and those in need of extracurricular help. Toronto is the country’s V-12 economic engine, producing enough torque and horsepower to make it the second largest financial centre on the continent. In the last decade, the city’s GDP has grown by 2.4 per cent annually, compared to 1.8 per cent nationally. Pick a sector, any sector, and Toronto is crushing it, including in tech, green energy, fashion, design, entertainment, digital media and life sciences. Ask a visitor to size up Toronto and what you will invariably hear is, “Man, this place is awesome.”

On a global brand level, that’s great.

And on a national political level, it is horrible.

On Monday night, as the election returns came in slower than a three-toed sloth on Ambien, what you also quickly realized is that Toronto will never be on the country’s front burner. We’re more of a self-cleaning oven. We are taken for granted, expected to come up with our own recipes, expected to clean up our own mess. We’ve learned to make-do with Ottawa’s disregard because, compared to elsewhere in the country, our issues do not animate any national hand-wringing.

There is no possible oil pipeline running under the Danforth. The hipsters on Queen West are not quietly pushing for a referendum on separation. Yorkville is not bracing for climate change. The Waterfront is not preoccupied with refugees. The Junction is not obsessed with global trade agreements. Chinatown is not saying much of anything when it comes to Hong Kong or China.

What’s sad about this woeful disconnect between a gloriously stable city and a world in chaos is that Toronto, if we’re to still thrive in the future, has needs a minority government may well ignore. When I asked Mayor John Tory’s office for his Top Five priorities in dealing with Ottawa, post-election, here’s what he said:

“Funding for transit expansion and ongoing state of good repair.”

“Funding for housing to build more affordable housing in Toronto and continue to repair our existing social housing.”

“Funding for investments in kids and families to address the roots of gun violence.”

“Funding for major infrastructure improvements to address climate change and help the environment.”

“Funding for mental health and addiction treatment.”

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As Tory said in a followup email: “As Mayor, I have focused on building strong relationships and partnerships with all levels of government that have led to historic investments. I look forward to meeting with my federal colleagues as quickly as possible to make sure we are working together to build transit and address Toronto’s needs.”

That’s the right attitude. This election, more than any other in recent memory, is a reminder that Toronto can’t become complacent, that we can’t stop pushing for other levels of government to recognize where we need to go.

But after Monday’s election, once again, all we can do is wait.

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