THE QUESTIONNAIRE
20 questions. One standard.
Policy questions ask what a candidate would do, what it costs, what it trades off, and what a mayor can actually deliver. Leadership questions ask how they work with people, especially people who disagree with them.
POLICY & PRIORITIES · What will you do?
P01Housing & affordability
What housing would you get built in Toronto during your term, where would it go, and how would you make sure some of it stays genuinely affordable?
TTC & transit
What are the three most important changes you would make to transit in Toronto, and how would you pay for them?
City finances & taxes
Toronto needs better services but has limited money. What would you spend more on, what would you spend less on, and what taxes or fees, if any, would you change?
Community safety, homelessness & mental health
What should the City do about homelessness, addiction, mental-health crises and public disorder, and where do policing and enforcement fit into your approach?
Congestion & getting around
How would you balance cars, transit, bikes and pedestrians when improving one mode makes another less convenient? Give us one concrete Toronto corridor or decision as an example.
Development, permits & red tape
How much faster should Toronto approve housing, businesses and construction, what rules would you change to get there, and what protections are you unwilling to give up?
Jobs, business & competitiveness
What would you do in your first two years to keep and attract employers, protect small businesses and main streets, and keep Toronto competitive with other cities? What would it cost?
Climate, parks & public space
What is the most important environmental, parks or public-space action you could realistically deliver in one term, and how would you measure it?
Queen’s Park & Ottawa
What specifically would you demand from the province and the federal government, and what would you do if they refuse?
Competence & accountability
Name one measurable result you would commit to delivering during your first two years. What would success look like, and how should residents hold you accountable if you don't deliver it?
LEADERSHIP & EXECUTION · How will you get it done?
L01Collaboration
Tell us about a time you accomplished something important by working with people who initially disagreed with you. What did you do?
Changing your mind
Give us an example of an important issue where someone persuaded you that you were wrong. What changed your mind?
Building a Council majority
You will need the votes of other councillors to get anything done. How will you build a majority on Council, including with people who did not support you?
Working with opponents
How would you work with a premier, a prime minister or councillors whose politics you strongly disagree with?
Using mayoral powers
The Mayor has more formal powers than a single councillor. When would you use them to get a decision, and when would you deliberately not?
Communication
How will residents know what you're doing at City Hall, and how will you hear from residents who don't attend meetings or follow politics online?
Decision-making
If the loudest voices want one thing but the evidence tells you something different, what do you do?
Handling mistakes
Tell us about a significant professional or public mistake you've made. What did you do after realizing you'd made it?
Managing competing interests
When residents, businesses, developers, City staff, unions and advocacy groups all want different outcomes, how do you decide whose interests prevail?
Leadership temperament
What behaviour from another elected official would make you walk away from negotiations, and what behaviour wouldn't?