Eye: Draft John Tory!

That’s right, your friendly neighbourhood alternative to the alt-weekly wants former Ontario Conservative leader John Tory to run for mayor again. The municipal election race has officially gone over into Bizarro World.

I suspect Tory is going to throw his hat into the race just before the deadline in September. Given his resources and name recognition he wouldn't be at a disadvantage having a truncated campaign and given the lack of enthusiasm around the current crop - or rather the fact that most Torontonians would be willing to vote to stop an idiot like Rob Ford from becoming mayor but are turned off by Smitherman's bullyishness and bored by Pantalone - Tory is well placed to swoop in as a last minute saviour.

I agree with aka Mycroft. The current contenders are pablum and this very well may be a race that Tory can finally win. I would take him any day over Ford.

I don't think it's that weird. I think I would rather have John Tory than Rob Ford or George Smitherman, at least. 

David Crombie was a Tory; William Dennison was NDP.  Perspective.

Never thought I would be ishing for Tory to enter the race.  This is lack lustre group we have now.

Whoowee! Not a Torontonian, but: if Tory enters, he will run a measured, sensible campaign for two weeks, impressing even his opponents with his sincerity and earnest desire for the betterment of Toronto. Then he will announce a campaign to solve Toronto's transit crisis by fitting aero engines and retractable wings to streetcars. I like Tory, even though I seldom agree with him. But he has the fatal defect, for a politician, of not being able to walk around a steaming cow-pie. Instead he wades in till it's upper-deep on his Florsheims, then tracks the mess all over the carpet and refuses to change his shoes. He is probably a brilliant VP, when there's someone to smother his worst ideas at birth. But allow him free rein and he becomes the thinking man's Rob Ford.

He does seem to get himself in a lot of trouble for a smart guy!

It was always said that Pecaut created the Toronto City Summit Alliance as a platform for a future mayoral bid.  I think Tory would have to spend a bit more time in that role to truly don the mantle of the business-reformist politician.

Tory entering the race will help Pantalone and hurt the others. 

Tory's indecision is final, it seems. Rather than him flip-flopping, I tend to think he's being a wily old bird, waiting until the last moment and announcing, causing a stampede from pretty much all campaigns (except Pantalone's) just when they need their teams most. And who is going to have the inside track on the status of the opposition's campaigns?

The piece makes a lot of Thomson losing the most support, but she honestly doesn't have much support to lose. Rossi would have big problems, and Ford would come off looking very juvenile beside Tory. If Ford chooses to keep running in that instance, he may well win Etobicoke, but he'd get beaten upside down by Tory in the rest of the city. Smitherman will be hurt, but I don't think a lot of otherwise-Tory supporters would vote for him, just because he's a former Lib.

If the final polls were to say Smitherman 40%, Tory 40% and Pantalone 10% - I'd vote strategically for Tory.

So would I. Smitherman is truly one of the worst people I've ever met.

A Smitherman-Tory race would be ugly indeed.  Smitherman will be telling us non-stop that JOHN TORY = MIKE HARRIS.

I will vote for Pantalone regardless.  He is the best candidate.