TORONTO – Mayor Rob Ford will know Friday whether or not the appeal of his ouster was successful at the Ontario Appeals Court.
Ford appealed a November 26, 2012 decision that ousted him from office and found him to have contravened the municipal conflict of interest rules.
Despite the pending decision, he was calm during what could potentially be his last full day as mayor saying he will “roll with the punches.”
If Ford’s loses his appeal, city council will have 60 days to declare Ford’s seat vacant.
City council has the choice to either appoint a new mayor or hold a by-election.
Appointment
If council chooses to appoint a new mayor, any Toronto resident above the age of 18 could be nominated.
Council can appoint Ford and some councillors believe reappointing the mayor would be the only way of upholding the democratic process.
“The mayor got a mandate in the last election and I think he should be given every opportunity to fulfill it,” Councillor Norm Kelly said. “The punishment doesn’t fit the transgression.”
Councillor Giorgio Mammoliti echoed Kelly saying in the event that Ford loses his appeal, he will support an appointment.
“I will be the first one to move a motion to get him appointed back onto council to finish out what we started,” Mammoliti said.
By-election
However, city council can also call a by-election at a cost of approximately $7 million.
Ford would be allowed to run in the by-election.
Several councillors suggest a by-election is necessary, despite the cost, in order to allow Torontonians to vote on their next mayor.
Councillor Gord Perks told Global News that a by-election is appropriate because a group of just 44 people should not decide the mayor for the city.
“I think it’s really important that Torontonians get a chance to say what they want. I think we have to have a by-election and that’s the only way we can restore faith and confidence in city hall,” Perks said.
Councillor Janet Davis also thinks a by-election would be necessary in the event Ford loses his appeal to ward off backroom deals and a veiled process.
“I have concern about an appointment process. I think that the backhaul, arm twisting and deal making will start because any councillor who wants to be an interim-mayor through appointment will be looking for 23 votes and it will not be a very transparent process and that worries me,” Davis said.
The decision is scheduled to be made public at 10:30a.m Friday but despite the outcome there are potentially more legal troubles for Ford that could permanently hamper him from serving in municipal office.
Campaign finance audit
A forensic audit of Ford’s 2010 election campaign finances is currently underway and the results could soon be released.
Toronto resident, Adam Chaleff-Freudenthaler brought a formal complaint to the city after it was revealed Ford may have used a family holding company to finance his campaign and that he may have spent more than the legal limit.
Councillor Adam Vaughan, a regular opponent of Ford, said city council needs the results of the audit before moving forward with either a by-election or an appointment.
“One of the things that I think we need to factor into this as we try to move forward whether or not he will even be eligible to run in another election,” Vaughan said. “The allegations that he cheated during the last election and the irregularities in his campaign financing are really serious and if it turns out that the audit committee says he did cheat in the election, we may be kicking him out all over again.”
If Ford is found to have violated the Municipal Elections Act, penalties can range from a fine to being banned from seeking public office.
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