I wrote an open letter to everyone in the ward. We must do something to encourage greater voter turnout. I believe it starts with ranked ballots, term limits, scheduling open debates in public venues, and disclosing donor lists prior to election day.
Congratulations to Paula Fletcher on a successful and well organized campaign, and to the other candidates, like myself, who were also running for political office for the first time. Use the knowledge you gained to position yourself for another go at it in the future.
It would be amazing if there was great media hoopla about being the first in line to vote on election day...just like the excitement over being first in line at the @LetsGoToTheEX on opening day.
@George_S In the age of social media, it can be difficult to understand why "knocking on doors" is still considered a important part of any campaign...until you knock on a couple thousand. It then all becomes clear. The acknowledgement is greatly appreciated.
@jonkay@JVanMaren@sullydish Just looking to confirm...students need a permission form with a parent or guardian signature to go on a field trip to the library or participate in track and field, but a permission form is not required to change their identity?
Excellent thread about why ranked ballots and term limits are important democratic tools. City Council has hesitated on these issues for decades, primarily, in my opinion, to protect the advantages of incumbency.
What can you do to change this?
#VoteThemAllOut2022
@NKossovan tells it like it is...
"People who are disengaged from politics often cite political bashing and a lack of civil dialogue as the reasons".
Fine line between "bashing" and "reasonable debate"...
@voteWali
@voteWali @NKossovan@PaulaFletcherTO@TorontoStar@CP24@CityNewsTO@globalnewsto@CBCToronto It's amazing the the reasons we get into politics...
Change! The greater good! Making a difference!
Is not what keeps incumbents in politics...
Name recognition. First past post. "Communications" budget.
Is the electorate satisfied or discouraged with a 40.9% (2018) turnout?
@NKossovan @voteWali @PaulaFletcherTO@TorontoStar@CP24@CityNewsTO@globalnewsto@CBCToronto I agree - it's playing it smart if your intent is exclusively to get re-elected. The stage has already been set with voting down ranked ballots and term limits.
She's projected herself as a "fighter", but now when the opportunity is there, she "didn't get the memo"...
Are there any incumbents willing to release their donor list prior to the election? In the interests of full transparency, it would be beneficial if the electorate knew who is supporting you ahead of voting.
The effectiveness of my plan to develop city-owned housing that’s rent stabilized, not subsidized, can be seen in how angry real estate bros are this morning.
All of a sudden supply “any supply” doesn’t fix the problem, only supply they build does. 🤷♂️😂
#tore#topoli
I asked @PaulaFletcherTO today why she failed to respond to my inquiries to debate. She said they get lots of email. With a $500,000 total salaried staff of six, if you can't respond to a couple of emails, how can we expect you to run the city?
@SueAnnLevy@nationalpost
@PaulaFletcherTO@TorontoACORN@TorontoTenants You've had 30+ years in municipal politics to get the job done. You couldn't even show up to vote against above guideline increases. I don't know how else you can illustrate you're only in it to get re-elected. See how the other progressives voted?
Mayor John Tory debates today! The Toronto Region Board of Trade is hosting the second of just two mayoral debates featuring our incumbent mayor.
The fine folks at @TVO are streaming it here. I’ll probably tweet some stuff about it in this thread. https://t.co/8X2BP21lgJ
When you're focused on legacy projects rather than effectively managing the services you're supposed to provide. When are we going to have a clean and safe city?
I wonder what Toronto would look like if the Mayor and Councillors actually worked in the interests of the people, and not just in the interests of being re-elected. These uninspiring incumbents are the reason why 55% voter turnout is a Toronto record.