The Times They Are A-Changin’ (Mostly)

In the 2010 municipal election, Ontarians sorted through more than 8,000 candidates to select about 2,800 council members and 700 school trustees. During that election, voter turnout across the province was estimated to be below 50 percent. Although municipal governments deliver most of the services we use every day, municipal elections receive less media coverage than provincial and federal elections. As a result, fewer people tend to vote in them.

This paper, which is part of the IMFG’s Pre-Election Perspectives series, profiles election campaigns in six of Ontario’s biggest cities – Hamilton, London, Mississauga, Ottawa, Toronto and Windsor. Stripping away the slogans and electioneering, the authors focus on the unique economic, demographic, and fiscal conditions in each city, and the major policy challenges candidates should be talking about and voters should be considering as they head to the ballot box. For each of the six cities, a local expert was recruited to take on this task.