Former city councillor Doug Ford says he is assembling an “exploratory team” to look into a potential mayoral run in 2018.
Ford, who lost to John Tory in the 2014 election, made the comment during a one-on-one interview with CP24 on Friday.
Ford has previously said that he would consider running against Tory in 2018, however his plan to assemble a team of advisers is perhaps the biggest indicator to date that he is serious about getting back into city politics after openly flirting with the concept of running provincially.
“It is not 100 per cent yet. I am not announcing that I am running for mayor. I am announcing that I am assembling a team, a very strong team that is going to put the taxpayers first as opposed to the bureaucrats and the special interests in this city,” he told CP24. “I look forward to moving forward with the team we are assembling.”
Since leaving politics, Ford has repeatedly spoken about a desire to seek elected office.
At one point, he openly milled about seeking the leadership of the Ontario Progressive Conservative party. More recently, he has also suggested that he would consider running for the Progressive Conservative party in the 2018 provincial election.
Discussing a possible campaign platform with CP24 on Friday, Ford said it would revolve around saving taxpayers money.
Ford then criticized the bike lanes that have been set up along a stretch of Bloor Street as part of a pilot project, suggesting that “85 per cent of the people drive.”
“You look at Bloor Street. That is an absolute disaster. They turned it into bike lanes. I am against that,” he said.
Ford and Tory in statistical tie: poll
Ford’s announcement that he is now forming a team to look into a run for the mayoral job once held by his brother comes hours after the release of a poll indicating that he would be represent a formidable challenge for Tory.
The Forum Research poll of 1,035 residents found that 40 per cent of those who are decided or leaning would support Tory in 2018 while 38 per cent would support Ford. A further 22 per cent said they would vote for someone else entirely.
Tory tended to perform the best in Scarborough (45 per cent support) and North York (40 per cent support) while Ford was more popular in Etobicoke (46 per cent). Ford also outperformed Tory in East York (38 per cent to 34 per cent), where a greater proportion of voters said they would support someone else.
“Doug Ford and John Tory are virtually tied, which is remarkable given that just six months ago John Tory led Ford by almost thirty-percent," Forum Research President Lorne Bozinoff said in a press release." Perhaps what makes this result all the more concerning for the mayor is that support is galvanizing against him for a candidate that hasn’t even declared yet."
Though an election will not be held until October, 2018, the results suggest a tightening of the still-hypothetical race.
Tory’s lead over Ford was as high as 19 per cent in January but dropped to 16 points in March and 11 points in April.
The two-point lead Tory now enjoys is within the poll’s margin of error, which is three percent.
In response, Tory's spokesperson Don Peat said the mayor is "focused on standing up for Toronto and doing the job he was elected to do - building transit, tackling traffic congestion, and getting more affordable housing in the city."
He added that Ford has often suggested he was thinking about running for mayor since the last election.
