WATCH: Doug Ford came out swinging Tuesday – claiming the only endorsement he needs is from the residents of Toronto. Ford claims political endorsements only blur priorities and can potentially go sour.
TORONTO – Doug Ford announced Tuesday he has received an endorsement from John Tory — from 2010.
Ford, reading off a prepared speech at his campaign headquarters, referenced a quote Tory made to the Toronto Star about his election run in 2010; calling the then aspiring councillor a “smart button down, no-nonsense business person.”
The political move was followed by an announcement of a new Ford campaign ad targeting Tory which is expected to be released in the coming days.
Ford also lashed out at the mayoral candidates and their seemingly endless series of endorsements by calling them “political insiders and lobbyists.”
READ MORE: Do political endorsements make a difference?
“When I’m elected, I won’t be in anybody’s pockets,” Ford told reporters. “The only endorsement my campaign needs is from you, the people.”
“Once you have a political endorsement, they come for favours.”
WATCH: In the latest twist of the 2014 mayoral campaign in Toronto, Doug Ford has dug up an old endorsement from John Tory and used it to his advantage in a political ad.
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John Tory brushed aside Ford’s ploy and said any potential he saw in Ford failed to materialize.
“We’ve seen the division, we’ve seen the chaos, we’ve seen that Doug Ford that I had hope for frankly let us down,” Tory told reporters outside city hall Tuesday. “That’s not going to be the recipe for the next four years to get the city back on track.”
It didn’t take long for the public to weigh in on Ford’s pseudo campaign endorsement.
READ MORE: Advance voting for Toronto’s municipal election begins Oct. 14
Meanwhile, candidate Olivia Chow announced she received an endorsement from federal Green Party leader Elizabeth May.
That was quickly followed by Tory announcing the support on Tuesday from former Green Party leader Jim Harris.
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