TORONTO STAR
Is John Tory being wooed to run?
June 01, 2010
Vanessa Lu
After all the twists and turns of the 2010 Toronto mayor’s race, could another horse be jumping back in?
Speculation is rampant at city hall that John Tory — who had widely been expected to run but declined in January to throw his hat in the ring — is being courted again to reconsider, a signal that influential people are unhappy with the current field.
Candidates to date include former provincial politician George Smitherman, Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone, Councillor Rob Ford and former Heart and Stroke Foundation chief Rocco Rossi.
Several city councillors were approached last week about whether they would be willing to endorse Tory, the former leader of the provincial Tories, who has chosen instead to host a radio talk show and lead the nonpartisan Toronto City Summit Alliance.
Councillor Peter Milczyn said he has not been called by Tory himself, but others have asked. “I said if he did it, that would be interesting. That was who I was inclined to support,†he said.
However, Milczyn is not convinced Tory would jump back in, noting the former Rogers executive attended Milczyn’s May fundraiser in Etobicoke and told those who were urging him to run that he wouldn’t be running.
“I’m not that close to John Tory, but I think he’s made his decision,†Milczyn said.
Councillor Case Ootes said he has asked colleagues about Tory out of his own curiosity.
“I think people are disappointed with the field,†Ootes said, adding that while Ford has a strong fiscal message, he would have difficulty getting 23 votes on city council to get legislation approved. “You can’t stray too far from the centre,†Ootes said.
When reached in Europe on Monday, where Tory is attending his daughter Susan’s medical school graduation, he declined to comment on the rumours.
Observers say that if Tory changes his mind, there’s still plenty of time for him to jump back in, given his name recognition, noting it would be easy to raise the campaign funds.
Others say Tory is happy with his life outside of politics, where his radio gig gives him the freedom to speak out on issues of the day, and earlier this spring, he accepted a position on the board of Rogers Communications.