Toronto Mayor Candidates: A Snowball’s Chance in Hell

Hmmm, should there really be an opendoor policy to run for public office?

Admittedly I have no skin in the game,given that I reside in Hamilton, in the race that is unfolding for Toronto’snext mayor. Normally I do not pay much attention to municipal candidates inother cities beyond what makes it onto the evening news.

But I am intrigued by the fact that 102candidates filed nomination papers for the position. Truthfully, intriguedmay not be the right word to use. Puzzled, befuddled or skeptical might betterdescribe my reaction – enough so to make me investigate what is required torun.

Filing a nomination is less rigorousthan I would have imagined. You complete a simple nomination form, get 25 signatureson an Endorsement of Nomination Form, present acceptable identification, pay a$200 fee and provide financial statements.

The endorsement process is littlemore than a formality. You can endorse as many people as you like and can endorsemore than one person running for the same office. The bar is set about as lowas it can possibly be.

The qualifications required are also verybasic. You must be a Canadian citizen at least 18 years of age; a City ofToronto resident or owner or tenant of land in the city or spouse of the owneror tenant; not legally prohibited from voting (whatever that means). You cannotbe a judge, an MP, an MPP or senator unless you resign that position.

In other words, pretty much any Tom,Dick or Harriet can throw their hat in the ring. The principle employed is moreor less any citizen in good standing. I am not sure I agree with this opendoor policy. It seems to me that there needs to be some minimum qualificationsin terms of experience especially for a role as crucial as mayor.

You may argue that it is up to theelectorate to judge the qualifications, or lack thereof, of the candidates. Butis it not a poor reflection on the integrity of the process to have a craploadof candidates most of whom have no legitimate qualifications?

I have to wonder why all these peopledid throw their hat in the ring when 95% of them do not have a snowball’schance in hell of getting elected. Perhaps some of them did so simply on alark. “Hey, I’m running for mayor! Buy me a beer!”. But the majority of them arepresumably serious in their intention and seriously delusional in theirexpectations.

From what I can see, there are half adozen candidates seriously in the running and a few dark horse candidates whomay garner a handful of support. The rest are purely paper candidates withno credentials taking up space on the ballot.

I guess it is democracy at work: thedoor is open to everyone. But it is not, in my estimation, a particularlyshining example of that important principle.

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