2012 has not been a good year for Canadian mayors. While Toronto Mayor Rob Ford’s follies have garnered global attention, he is hardly the only mayor of a municipality to have recently been subjected to heavy public scrutiny. Over the past several months there has been a national epidemic of mayoral mishaps and allegations of malfeasance that has resulted in several resignations.
To broadly categorize these acts of indiscretion: the Montreal-area has been rocked by the recent revelations about organized crime potentially swaying municipal contracts, the Greater Toronto Area has seen both Ford and Hazel McCallion’s reputations damaged by conflict of interest charges, and looking westward yields charges of professional negligence and allegations of outright fraud. Meanwhile in Calgary, the love affair with Naheed Nenshi continues unabated.
