Former Conservative Member of Parliament, Chris Alexander, has withdrawn from the competition to become the next mayor of Toronto. The announcement was made at his campaign headquarters in Toronto before the advance voting polls opened across the city on Tuesday. Alexander entered the election race on July 29, expressing his intention to provide Toronto with a renewed sense of direction, stating that the city seemed to be slightly adrift.
Having grown up in Toronto, Alexander relocated to the city with his family in 2022. Recent polling data from Mainstreet Research positioned Alexander in a distant third place in the mayoral race, garnering only 7.2 percent of support from respondents. Incumbent Olivia Chow led the polls with 38 percent support, followed by Coun. Brad Bradford at 32 percent.
Before his political career, Alexander served in Canada’s foreign service and notably held the position of the first resident Canadian ambassador to Afghanistan from 2003 to 2005. He later served as the Member of Parliament for Ajax-Pickering from 2011 to 2015 and as the federal immigration minister in Stephen Harper’s government from 2013 to 2015. Alexander gained attention for his 2014 barbaric cultural practices bill aimed at addressing issues such as honor killings, child marriages, and polygamy.
Following Alexander’s withdrawal, the number of candidates vying for the mayoral position in Toronto stands at 52. The complete list of candidates can be found on the city’s official website.