The man with a clan
Doug Ford was driving down a Chicago highway last Jan. 7 when he got the phone call that upended his life.
“Jones – you wouldn't believe it. John Tory's not running.â€
Jones is 45-year-old Doug, the smoother and slimmer make of Ford elected to Toronto city council this week. Jones is also 41-year-old Rob, the rougher and rounder model elected mayor the same night.
The brothers never call each by their real names. It's always just Jones, a reciprocal tic they picked up from an Englishman who used to keep the books at Deco Labels & Tags, their multimillion-dollar printing company. These are siblings so close they share one nickname.
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Most politicians have families – spouses and offspring who back them as reassuring props at events and in photos. Rob Ford has a clan, one that includes the only people he seems to truly trust, and it's the one he grew up with in the pocket of north Etobicoke now sometimes referred to as “Ford country.†In fact, his wife, Renata, and two young children went unseen this campaign season until election night.
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“The Ford family has its own language,†says Mark Towhey, the campaign's policy director. “It's a very tight circle and not very many people get into that circle.â€
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Although a supportive family can be an asset, there's some concern the Fords could exert too much influence at City Hall. Doug has already assumed the role of unofficial spokesman, which made sense when he was campaign manager, but could be a problem now that he's a councillor-elect. Could the Fords become an insular administration?