ast night Toronto’s six leading mayoral candidates faced off at the Isabel Bader Theatre downtown.
Facilitated by the Toronto Region Board of Trade and TVO Today Live, the candidates debated key issues like rent and housing affordability, policing and violence within communities and the TTC, fixing a failing transit system, a lack of available mental health resources and the touchy subject of raising property taxes.
The debate included former city councillor and member of parliament Olivia Chow, city councillors Josh Matlow and Brad Bradford, former city councillor and deputy mayor Ana Bailão, former member of Ontario’s provincial parliament representing Scarborough—Guildwood Mitzie Hunter and Toronto’s former police chief Mark Saunders.
Saunders said he believes that increasing police on the TTC will help curb violence.
“I’m running because we’ve normalized crime and disorder,” Saunders said. “Ms. Bailão and Mr. Matlow raised their hands [in city council] to say ‘remove the guns from the Toronto police.’ And Mr. Bradford put his hand up too. So I can’t take them seriously when they talk about community safety.”
Chow spoke of the need for better mental health support across the city to curb the uptick in violent crimes on the TTC, not the police. Chow plans to increase the budget of the Toronto Community Crisis Response, where people can call 211 instead of 911 in mental health emergencies.
Chow is the current front-runner according to several recent polls.
City Councillor Matlow said he has a plan that “addresses the right for everyone to have a roof over their head,” using a holistic approach to shelter and housing.
There are currently over 100 candidates on the ballot.
Toronto’s mayoral election will take place on June 26.
