Press Release:
Supreme Court Decision on Doug Ford’s Election Meddling
October 1, 2021 — The Supreme Court of Canada released its decision on Doug Ford’s unprecedented attack on Toronto and local democracy. In 2018 Doug Ford changed the rules and wards in the middle of our city election, weeks before voters went to the polls. It threw our elections into disarray, trampling on the rights of candidates and voters. Alongside thousands of Torontonians, Progress Toronto fought this all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada. The case was heard on March 16, 2021 and Progress Toronto held official intervenor status.
“Today we found out that, in a narrow split decision of 5-4, we lost our Supreme Court Case against Doug Ford’s undemocratic meddling in Toronto’s election,” said Saman Tabasinejad, Organizing Director at Progress Toronto. “We are disappointed in the Court’s decision, but grateful for the findings of the four dissenting Justices who agreed with Progress Toronto’s submissions that the Ford Government violated the Charter. We are ready to get to work on the 2022 elections just around the corner.”
While Progress Toronto had intervenor status at the Supreme Court, we have also been running and winning campaigns for a more equitable and affordable city and investing in training thousands of people.
“When Doug Ford meddled in Toronto’s 2018 elections he created the conditions for a more conservative City Council, pushing out young, diverse, and progressive women candidates from across the city,” said Saman Tabasinejad. “With this ruling from the Supreme Court, it is finally clear what the electoral map will look like for the 2022 Toronto elections and while it will be an uphill battle to flip some seats, we believe there is still a big opportunity for new and progressive candidates to shake things up at City Hall.”
In the city elections next year, Progress Toronto will be working hard to elect progressive candidates in key races across Toronto.
“Now, it’s time for all of us to turn our attention to Toronto’s 2022 municipal elections which begin April 1. This is our chance to change who holds power and the decisions being made at City Hall,” said Tabasinejad.
“We’re appealing to people to donate to our election-readiness fund today and sign up to volunteer so that before the election begins we can invest in leaders and draw attention to big issues like affordability,” said Tabasinejad. “Our work now will help pave the way for a much more progressive, diverse City Council that will finally build a Toronto that works for everyone.”
Contact Information:
Saman Tabasinejad, Organizing Director, Progress Toronto
saman@progresstoronto.ca
More information:
People can donate to the election-readiness here: https://donorbox.org/election-readiness-fund
March 2020 background on previous court decisions here: https://www.progresstoronto.ca/bill-5-supreme-court-update-mar-2020
March 2021 panel hosted by Progress Toronto: Doug Ford vs. The People that breaks down more about the case and what it means for Toronto. Watch the panel here: https://fb.watch/8macY97l-F/
Supreme Court decision here: https://decisions.scc-csc.ca/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/19011/index.do