Did you hear about the pot advocate who’s running for mayor? What about the dominatrix who has promised to whip the city into shape?

Chances are you may have heard of a fringe mayoral candidate if he or she has a particular niche. However there are many who don’t and consider themselves serious candidates.

And local photographer Lindsay Lauckner wants you to meet them.

Lauckner, a local photographer, has started a project to photograph all of the so-called fringe candidates in Toronto’s mayoral race.

“I was sort of shocked to find out even how many people run,” Lauckner told cp24.com.

There are currently 52 candidates registered to run for mayor in the Oct. 27 election. Of those, there are five who are generally considered to be front-runners: Incumbent Rob Ford, Coun. Karen Stintz, John Tory, Olivia Chow and David Socknacki.

Others candidates are typically not invited to debates organized by media outlets, interest groups and other organizations.

Curious about who these people are and why they would run when most of the media spotlight goes to front-runners, Lauckner began reaching out to the lesser-known names with a simple request; to take their photo.

Hoping to shed light on the people behind the names on the ballot, Lauckner has begun doing both studio-style portraits of fringe candidates, as well as shooting photos of them in their homes and neighbourhoods.

For now, she’s posting the photos to her blog as she makes her way through the list, though she hopes to eventually find a single creative space to exhibit the work.

Unsure of what she would discover, Lauckner says she was happy to find out that some lesser-known candidates take the race seriously.

“One of them was running as a bit of a joke or spoof, but there were some really serious people out there and some of them had some really great ideas,” Lauckner said.

She cites Jeff Billard as an example. The candidate has already posted a full platform on his election site. His priorities include initiatives to increase recycling, improve transportation to and from the airport and increasing support for startup businesses.

Lauckner also lauds Morgan Baskin, the city’s youngest candidate at 18 years old.

“It was really interesting to speak to someone so young who was so … poised,” Lauckner says.

Baskin has said she wants to bridge the divide between the suburbs and the downtown core and build a downtown relief line.

“They’re people who I think could do a really good job,” Lauckner says. “People who maybe hadn’t been involved in politics in the past, but had some managerial skills and other skills that could be useful.

“There was one candidate I spoke with and he was saying he didn’t really expect to win, but he wasn’t happy with what was out there. He was making a statement that if you’re unhappy with what’s out there, you can become part of the process yourself.”

While Lauckner’s only photographed a handful of candidates so far, she’s hoping to eventually make her way through the entire roster to give the lesser-known names a voice.

Other candidates Lauckner plans on shooting include dominatrix ‘Mizz Barbie B**ch’ (AKA Carlie Ritch) who says she’s unhappy with the job Rob Ford’s done running the city and cannabis advocate Matt Mernagh, who wants to get council to stop ‘legislating morality.’

There’s also gag candidate Charles Huang, who refers to himself as “His Supreme Royal Majesty” and Ryerson University politics grad Michael Tasevski.

With a mix of colourful characters and serious candidates, Lauckner says she expects the project to be eye-opening.

“It’s been really positive. A lot of people think it’s an interesting idea,” Lauckner says of the feedback she’s received so far.

As for whether she’d ever turn her lens on the mainstream candidates, Lauckner says she may, in the interest of fairness, eventually get in touch with the front-runners about sitting for portraits.

“I guess it would be democratic,” she says.

@Josh_F is on Twitter. Remember for instant breaking news follow @cp24 on Twitter.