Toronto councillor Brad Bradford says he’s officially running in the city’s mayoral race.
Bradford had said earlier that he was considering the move and had assembled an advisory committee that included individuals connected to both Progressive Conservative and Liberal backgrounds.
Bradford, a councillor for Beaches-East York, says today that his plan involves “less talk, more action” and that it’s time for the city to move forward on residents’ priorities.
His confirmation of a run for the city’s top job comes as Toronto council meets today for the first time since former mayor John Tory resigned.
Tory stepped down last month after revealing he had an “inappropriate affair'' with someone who used to work on his staff.
Bradford, who has a background in urban planning and is currently the city’s housing chair, was endorsed by Tory in the 2018 municipal election.
Tory later assigned Bradford some plum roles, including naming him to executive council and appointing him commissioner of the city’s transit system.
One of the items city councillors will be dealing with as they meet over three days is officially declaring the mayor’s office vacant and passing a bylaw requiring a byelection.
That would move the city one step closer to electing a new mayor.
The city clerk has already set out a timeline for the race to replace Tory, with voters expected to head to the polls on June 26, but that plan is subject to council approval.
Once council passes a bylaw requiring a byelection, nominations for the mayoral race would be expected to open April 3 and close May 12, with advance voting available from June 8 to June 13.
