Robert Bruce Ford (May 28, 1969 – March 22, 2016) was a Canadian politician and businessperson who served as the 64th mayor of Toronto from 2010 to 2014. Prior to and after his term as mayor, Ford was a city councilor representing Ward 2 of Etobicoke North. He was first elected to City Council in the 2000 Toronto municipal election, and was re-elected to his council seat twice. Ford was elected mayor in the 2010 mayoral election on a platform of reducing the "gravy train" of government expenses and taxes. The slogan "respect for taxpayers" was attached to that platform.
During his political career, Ford was the subject of a number of personal and work-related controversies and legal proceedings, including a conflict of interest trial that nearly resulted in his being removed from office. In 2013, he became embroiled in a substance abuse scandal, which was widely reported in the national and international media. Ford initially denied the allegations, but after a 2013 Toronto Police Service gang investigation led to police discovering videos of Ford, he admitted to all of the incidents, including public drunkenness, drinking and driving, and illegal drug use.
Following his admission, Ford refused to resign. Not allowed by law to remove Ford from office, Toronto City Council voted to remove certain mayoral powers from Ford and grant them to Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly for the remainder of Ford's term. Council also voted to reduce Ford's office staff and move those staff to Kelly's office.
Despite the scandal, Ford promised to "continue doing the job he was elected to do" and contest the next mayoral election, scheduled for October 2014. On January 2, 2014, Ford registered to run for re-election, but after being hospitalized and diagnosed with an abdominal tumour in September 2014, Ford withdrew from the mayoral race and registered instead to run for his old seat on the City Council.
Love him or hate him, here are 8 more memorable quotes by the former mayor...
