Get in line folks. There is still the possibility of another election in Toronto. We might need another strong mayor. The job pays more than $200,000 a year and you get a lot of free lunches and dinners and breakfasts. And the only serious advice is not to have sex with any member of your staff. (Which is good advice in any job.)
What is intimidating is that the last mayor did a hell of a good job. If there were shots fired on the Danforth, the mayor was there. If a truck goes wild on north Yonge Street, the mayor is there. Any spectacular fire, or loss of life, the mayor is there to commiserate.
This is a 24/7 job. Nor should you be so foolish as to think of it as easy You have to deal with 24 people on a daily basis who all want your job. And they are all sure they could do a better job of it. And you always have to remember to keep your enemies close and be on your guard against those who say they want to be your friend.
You have to always remember that this is an elected job. You have to work hard to get elected and work harder to stay elected. Oh, did I mention that you might need to have at least $2,000,000 in the kitty for the campaign. And you will need the hard work of a campaign team of over a thousand close friends.
I should also warn you about this strong mayor business. You are allowed to override your council only when it suits the fancy of the premier of Ontario. You are attached to premier at the hip. He is the boss of you.
Did I also mention that you need to have excellent communication skills. You have to give the right speech at very short notice. You have to know the right things to say. You are also the official greeter for the city. It helps if you know how to say “welcome to our city” in at least 50 languages.
Oh, and another ‘by the way’ –candidates for this job normally have a year or more of campaigning getting ready for this job. I think the new law requires that the new mayor of Toronto has to be chosen within 60 days. Good luck.
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