George Smitherman
Age: 46
In the polls: 40.5 per cent*
Last seen:
As deputy premier and energy and infrastructure minister, bulldog to Dalton McGuinty's Premier Dad. Mr. Smitherman credits himself with the province's Green Energy Act, which creates built-in subsidies for renewable energy. His critics also credit the former health minister with the "billion-dollar boondoggle" that was e-Health.
Quote he wants you to remember:
"I'm a man with a plan. … It's time for Toronto to get its groove back."
Feature film in the works? We hope so.
Quote he doesn't want you to remember:
"I don't negotiate with terrorists."
Taliban? FLQ? Nope: Optometrists fighting cuts in health-insurance coverage. (Then-health minister, Mr. Smitherman later apologized for the statement.)
Campaign high point:
The good news: Hundreds of starry-eyed supporters, enthused to the point of incoherence, have crammed themselves into a chic College Street resto-lounge, chanting his name as he gets a ringing endorsement from Liberal all-star Justin Trudeau.
The bad news: The fire marshal's coming. And the supporters are sweaty.
Low point:
After taking months of flak for running a cagey frontrunner's campaign, there's nothing like waking up to phone calls asking you why you're trailing in the polls by 24 percentage points.
Wake-up call, Mr. Smitherman? Try "evacuation siren."
Where he stands on...
Transit:
Light rail and subways to the suburbs: Mr. Smitherman would keep most of Transit City, but add to the edges - Downsview, Sherway Gardens, the Port Lands, the University of Toronto's Scarborough campus, the Woodbine Centre and Weston Road.
Reality check:
The money's not there: Mr. Smitherman's transit plan relies on $5-billion in debt over several years.
Money:
Freeze property taxes for a year, save $61-million a year by only replacing two-thirds of employees who retire and sell the city's minority stake in Enwave. Give seniors free rides on transit and spend $10-million on programs for youth employment.
Reality check:
2011 budget depends on $100-million from the province for which the city doesn't yet have a commitment. Like Mr. Ford, he relies (albeit not as heavily) on savings from attrition to make his fiscal plan work.
Governance:
Has promised to localize city decision-making, pursuing "community-based planning" and appointing neighbourhood councils of unelected residents and business owners, although it's not clear how much decision-making power they would have.
Reality check:
All the candidates have tried to tap into lingering dissatisfaction with a post-amalgamation Toronto. But the risk of hyper-local councils, observers warn, is that they'll balkanize neighbourhoods and render the city incapable of functioning as a single entity.
Superpower:
Centrist clout. Mr. Smitherman has sought to model himself as a progressive who's into "city-building" but isn't afraid to get tough when it comes to balancing the city's books.
Fatal weakness:
Mystery man. A year into his candidacy, many voters are still trying to figure out what this guy stands for.
* Based on figures from a Nanos Research poll of 1,000 very likely Toronto voters conducted Oct. 14-16.