A new Forum Research poll shows Olivia Chow losing her top spot and slipping into third place for the first time since campaigning for Toronto’s mayoral race began in January.

John Tory surged ahead of both Chow and Rob Ford by nearly 10 points.

In a survey of 1,268 people who were asked who they would vote for if the election was held today, 35 per cent said they would pick Tory. Ford came in second at 27 per cent and Chow lagged just a little behind with 25 per cent.

David Soknacki and Karen Stintz trailed further back with five and four percentage points, respectively.

While Ford’s support base has remained more or less consistent in the polls which have been held approximately twice a month, Tory has been gaining support among female voters and those with a household income greater than $250,000.

Thirty-eight per cent of female respondents said they would vote for Tory as compared to 23 per cent for Chow. Tory also led Chow 31 per cent to 27 per cent among male respondents.

A separate Forum Research poll with the same sample size showed that 64 per cent of voters who approve of the Toronto Police Service Board’s decision not to renew Chief Bill Blair’s contract would vote for Ford. Those who disagreed with the board’s decision tend to be younger with 54 per cent of them being Tory supporters.

In general, Toronto voters are split almost evenly on whether the board should have renewed the chief’s contract or not.

There is a three per cent margin of error for both polls.

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