John Tory handed over his mayoral powers at Toronto city hall on Friday, saying leaving the job breaks his heart but is the “right thing to do” given recent events.
Tory made no direct mention in his last public┬аstatement as mayor of the reason for his decision to step down: an extramarital affair with a former staffer.┬аHe took no questions from reporters after delivering his remarks.
In his statement, Tory┬аthanked his staff, his colleagues,┬аthe city’s public service┬аand the people of Toronto, saying┬аhe tried to unite the city during┬аhis tenure.
“All I tried to do was to be a mayor whose energy and drive matched that of the city itself, a mayor who tried hard to ensure that every part, every community, every person was included in the success story that is Toronto.”
The clock on Tory’s mayoral tenure ran┬аout at 5 p.m., one week after he shocked the city by announcing his resignation and admitting┬аhe had an “inappropriate relationship” with a former staffer.┬аHe announced he would resign shortly after details of the relationship were first published by the Toronto Star.
Tory’s┬аundoing comes just months after he handily won a third-term re-election bid, promising steady leadership in uncertain times. His resignation brings about a period of political uncertainty in Toronto, marshalling an indefinite stint of interim leadership and an eventual mayoral byelection.
His final statement as mayor┬аcame hours after a man threw multiple eggs at Tory’s office window at city hall early Friday morning.
Deputy mayor asked Tory to consider leave of absence
Tory said when the COVID-19 pandemic hit the city, he continued to work hard, “by always being ready to serve.”┬аDoing so honoured essential workers in Toronto, including health-care workers, he said.
“That’s what makes being Mayor of this city the best job anyone could have. And it’s why it breaks my heart to leave. But leaving was the right thing to do, hard as it may be,” he said.
Tory said he hoped to be remembered for doing the work of keeping the city stable. He said he also wants to be┬аknown for┬аbuilding new transit lines, getting housing built, keeping taxes affordable while investing in front-line services and demonstrating respect for all of Toronto’s communities.
He added┬аhe will be focused on rebuilding trust with his family, but will also be looking for other ways to contribute to the city “in the days ahead.”
Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie told reporters immediately after Tory’s statement┬аthat she burst into tears on Friday evening, when┬аhe told her “that there was going to be a story, that┬аit was true and that he would┬аbe resigning.”
McKelvie┬аwas in Ottawa. She said she was emotional then and was emotional on Friday when he┬аresigned.
She said she asked him if he would consider taking┬аa leave of absence instead but he said “this is what he wanted to do for his family.”
“I admire his sense of duty, I admire his sense of honour and I admire how he has taken full responsibility and how he has resigned,” she said.
“I think he uses his heart and he looked at what was best for him and his family and what was best for the city of┬аToronto and I think that’s admirable.”
Deputy mayor says her focus is on ‘good governance’
McKelvie thanked Tory for his years of service, wished him well and said she “fully respects” his request for privacy.
“He worked very long days, often seven days a week, because he loved this city and wanted to do a good job for┬аall residents,” she said.
McKelvie said she has spoken to the city clerk and a report on the impending byelection┬атАФ “the largest byelection ever held in Canada” тАФ will be delivered to city council at its next scheduled meeting on March 29.
The report┬аwill allow councillors to formally declare the mayor’s office vacant and pass a bylaw to initiate the mayoral byelection.
A nomination period would open the next day and last anywhere between 30 and 60 days, with the vote to be┬аheld 45 days after that.
“I will be making sure that we continue to deliver on the priorities on which Mayor Tory received a mandate from voters last October: keeping our city safe, getting housing built, getting transit built and making sure the nuts-and-bolts city services continue to be delivered in the best possible way,” McKelvie said.
“Residents can rest assured that┬аmy entire focus of this time is ensuring a smooth transition and continued good governance.”
McKelvie assumed mayoral powers at 5 p.m.┬аwhen Tory’s resignation took effect. She said she won’t be running to replace him. In his remarks, Tory had said she┬аhas the intelligence, dedication and experience to step into the role.
Tory calls public life┬а‘a sacrifice’ in memo
In a memo to┬а councillors Friday morning, Tory thanked his colleagues and called public life “a sacrifice.”
“Public life is a sacrifice for anyone and one you have made to contribute to a better future for our city,” he wrote.
“As for me, you can be sure I will be an engaged, contributing citizen trying to ensure, as you are, a bright future for our great city,” he said in the memo.
In the memo, Tory said to “ensure good governance,” he was delegating to the city manager authority to hire most senior officials and amend the city’s organizational structure.
Council will have the authority to hire deputy city managers and the city solicitor, as part of what Tory’s office is calling a standard transition process.
Despite announcing his resignation last Friday, Tory stayed on to see his budget approved by council this week.
In the memo, he called the budget, “a reasonably good example of working together in challenging circumstances.”
Toronto’s next council meeting will see the city clerk bring a┬аreport that allows councillors to formally declare the mayor’s office vacant and to pass a bylaw to initiate a byelection.
A nomination period would open the next day and last anywhere between 30 and 60 days, with the mayoral byelection held 45 days after that.
