The 1972 Toronto municipal election was held December 4, 1972, to elect the governments of

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, Ontario, Canada, the five other boroughs, and the government of

Metro Toronto The Municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was an Regional municipality, upper-tier level of municipal government in Ontario, Canada, from 1953 to 1998. It was made up of the Old Toronto, old city of Toronto and numerous townships, towns and vill ...

as well. The election was overshadowed by the 1972 federal election held October 30 and the American elections held November 7, but it resulted in a dramatic change in the city government. Four new mayors were elected, and 17 of 32 Metro seats were held by newcomers. In the City of Toronto, control of city council was won by the reform faction and reform leader

David Crombie David Edward Crombie (born April 24, 1936) is a former Canadian academic and politician who served as the 56th mayor of Toronto from 1972 to 1978. Crombie was elected to Parliament following his tenure as mayor. A member of the Progressive Co ...

was elected mayor. As in the 1969 election many of the central debates were over proposed megaprojects. The

Spadina Expressway Allen Road, formally known as William R. Allen Road, is a short municipal expressway and arterial road in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It starts as a controlled-access expressway at Eglinton Avenue, Eglinton Avenue West, heading north to just south ...

had been halted in 1971, but some wanted it built. The debate over the Scarborough Expressway was also one of the central issues in the east end. An IBM 370-155

mainframe computer A mainframe computer, informally called a mainframe or big iron, is a computer used primarily by large organizations for critical applications like bulk data processing for tasks such as censuses, industry and consumer statistics, enterprise ...

was used by the ''Toronto Star'' to process the results.

Toronto

Mayoral election

Incumbent mayor William Dennison chose not to turn for reelection. The three main candidates vying to replace him were city councillors

David Rotenberg David Rotenberg (July 24, 1930 – January 13, 2022) was a Canadian politician in Ontario. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1977 to 1985 as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party, and was briefly a cabinet minister ...

, and Tony O'Donohue. O'Donohue and Rotenberg were veteran councillors. Rotenberg had been on council ten years and had served as Deputy Mayor. He also won the endorsement of the ''Toronto Star''. Crombie had been elected to city council only three years earlier, previously serving as a professor at Ryerson Polytechnic Institute. He was a moderate member of the reform faction on council, willing to compromise with the Old Guard. A fourth notable candidate was ''

Toronto Sun The ''Toronto Sun'' is an English-language tabloid format, tabloid newspaper published daily in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The newspaper is one of several ''Sun'' tabloids published by Postmedia Network. The newspaper's offices are located at Pos ...

'' columnist

Paul Rimstead Paul Rimstead (1935 – 26 May 1987), born Andrew Paul Rimstad, was a Canadian journalist, the featured page 5 columnist for the Toronto Sun, and a sports writer. Life and career Born in Greater Sudbury, Sudbury, Ontario, the "Rimmer" was describ ...

, who ran a semi-serious campaign based on law and order policies. Crombie dominated the affluent midtown and North Toronto wards, and also carried the east end of the city. O'Donohue won the heavily ethnic, working class wards of the west end. ;Results :

- 82,754 : Tony O'Donohue - 58,362 :

- 35,213 :

- 7,934 :

Don Andrews Donald Clarke Andrews (born April 20, 1942, as Vilim Zlomislić) is a Canadian white supremacist. He is the leader of the Nationalist Party of Canada and a perennial candidate for mayor of Toronto, Ontario. Early years Zlomislić was born to C ...

- 1,960 :Jacquie Henderson - 1,598 : Nelson Clarke - 1,549

City council

Two aldermen were elected per Ward. The alderman with the most votes was declared Senior Alderman and sat on both Toronto City Council and Metro Council. The council elected in 1969 was split into two factions. The dominant group, commonly referred to as the 'Old Guard,' were 12 councillors who generally sided with developers and supported plans for urban renewal and new expressways. The opposition faction was made up of seven members who supported the reform movement. The reformers won a clear victory. Only four Old Guard aldermen were reelected:

William Boytchuk William Boytchuk (April 27, 1922 – January 22, 1998) was a longtime city councillor in Toronto, Ontario. He was born near Sniatyn, Poland and after spending several years in Germany immigrated to Canada in 1948. Working as a pharmacist he b ...

Joseph Piccininni Joseph J. Piccininni (born ''Guiseppe Piccininni'', January 15, 1922 – September 16, 1995) was a long-serving city councillor in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He represented the Corso Italia area on city council for 25 years. Background Born in To ...

, Fred Beavis, and Thomas Clifford. The reform faction won five new seats, giving them an overall majority on council. ;Ward 1 (

Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...

and

Bloor West Village Bloor West Village is a residential neighbourhood and shopping district in Toronto, Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada b ...

) : Elizabeth Eayrs (reform) - 10,312 :

(incumbent) - 9,229 : Ben Grys (incumbent) - 4,618 :Carl Glutsczak - 3,416 :Slough Bolton - 2,377 :Ed Homonylo - 1,046 :Yvette Tessier - 627 :Andrejs Murniecks - 370 ;Ward 2 ( Parkdale and Brockton) : Archie Chisholm (incumbent, reform) - 5,156 : Ed Negridge - 3,222 : Ken Dear - 2,938 :Dave May - 2,316 :Robert Grossi - 1,992 :Anne Fritz - 1,693 :Helen Johnson - 1,319 :Michael Hookway - 1,202 :Stanley Steban - 839 :John Stifel - 602 :Jack Prins - 203 ;Ward 3 (

Davenport Davenport may refer to: Places Australia *Davenport, Northern Territory, a locality *Hundred of Davenport, cadastral unit in South Australia **Davenport, South Australia, suburb of Port Augusta **District Council of Davenport, former local govern ...

and Corso Italia) : Michael Goldrick (reform) - 4,967 :

(incumbent) - 4,439 : Hugh Bruce (incumbent) - 3,800 :Joe Garisto - 2,213 :Tim Burke - 978 ;Ward 4 ( Trinity-Bellwoods and

Little Italy Little Italy is the catch-all name for an ethnic enclave populated primarily by Italians or people of Italian ancestry, usually in an Urban area, urban neighborhood. The concept of "Little Italy" holds many different aspects of the Italian cul ...

) :

Art Eggleton Arthur C. Eggleton (born September 29, 1943) is a retired Canadian politician who served as the 59th and longest-serving mayor of Toronto from 1980 to 1991. He was elected to Parliament in 1993, running as a Liberal in York Centre and served ...

(incumbent) - 3,034 : George Ben - 3,023 :Margot Andras (reform) - 2,439 :Frank Lacka - 1,587 : Harold Menzies - 1,593 :John Conforzi - 1,563 :Mary Fraser - 1,054 :Richard Follert - 319 :Robert Fairley - 207 :Darrell Furlotte - 163 ;Ward 5 (

The Annex The Annex is a neighbourhood in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The traditional boundaries of the neighbourhood extend north to Dupont Street, south to Bloor Street, west to Bathurst Street (Toronto), Bathurst Street and east to Avenue Road, ...

and Yorkville) :

Ying Hope Ying L.K. Hope Professional Engineer, P. Eng. (1923 – November 12, 2007) was a Chinese Canadian politician, Toronto District School Board, Toronto Public School Board trustee and Metro Toronto Councillor and Toronto Alderman. Hope's grandparen ...

(incumbent, reform) - 12,872 : Colin Vaughan (reform) - 11,585 :Erna Kauffman - 2,685 :David Astle - 1,469 :David Boyd - 933 :Manfred Schulzke - 698 :Melania Gural - 561 :Wilson Greig - 437 ;Ward 6 (

Financial District, Toronto The Financial District is the central business district of downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was originally planned as New Town in 1796 as an extension of the Town of York (later the St. Lawrence Ward). It is the main financial district in To ...

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

) : William Archer (incumbent) - 7,395 : Dan Heap (reform) - 7,153 :

June Marks (Florence) June Marks, née Pacey (1923–2008) was a Toronto community activist and politician. She first ran for city council in 1962 in Ward 2 but was defeated. She was elected on her second attempt in 1964 and, in 1966, won citywide election t ...

(incumbent) - 6,396 : Horace Brown (incumbent) - 2,928 :Arthur Downes - 2,127 ;Ward 7 (

Regent Park Regent Park is a neighbourhood located in downtown Toronto, Ontario built in the late 1940s as a public housing project managed by Toronto Community Housing. It sits on what used to be a significant part of the Cabbagetown neighbourhood and ...

and Riverdale) :

Karl Jaffary Karl Dennis Jaffary (March 20, 1936 – July 2, 2024) was a Canadian municipal politician in Toronto, Ontario. Life and career Jaffary was born in New Orleans on March 20, 1936, and moved to Toronto with his family in 1940. He went to school ...

(incumbent, reform) - 10,572 :

John Sewell John Sewell (born December 8, 1940) is a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as the 58th mayor of Toronto from 1978 to 1980. Background Born and raised in the Beach neighbourhood, in Toronto, Sewell attended Malvern Collegiate Institute ...

(incumbent, reform) - 9,952 :Richard Kirkup - 4,969 :Samuel Rotenberg - 3,212 :Karl Van Harten - 448 :Charles Rolfe - 422 ;Ward 8 ( Riverdale) : Fred Beavis (incumbent) - 7,253 : Thomas Clifford (incumbent) - 6,794 :Dallard Runge (reform) - 5,724 :Ellie Kirzner - 595 :Christopher Greenland - 542 ;Ward 9 (

The Beaches A beach is a geological formation consisting of loose rock particles along the shoreline of a body of water. Beach, Beaches or beaching may also refer to: Geography Canada * Beaches (federal electoral district), a federal electoral district in ...

) : Reid Scott (reform, incumbent) - 10,432 : Dorothy Thomas (reform) - 5,643 :Joe McNulty - 4,479 :Jim Purdie - 4,199 : Tom Wardle Jr. - 4,004 :John Oliver - 2,100 :Don Ray - 797 :George Leslie - 318 :John Square - 115 ;Ward 10 ( Rosedale and

North Toronto North Toronto is a former town and informal district located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Town of North Toronto was incorporated in 1890 by consolidating the villages of Bedford Park, Eglinton and Davisville. The town was annexed by Toronto ...

) : William Kilbourn (incumbent, reform) - 20,099 : Paul Pickett (incumbent) - 14,023 :Juanne Hemsol (reform) - 9,578 :Margaret Bryce - 2,641 :Art Keay - 1,449 ;Ward 11 ( Forest Hill and

) :

Anne Johnston Anne Johnston (1932 – June 26, 2019) was a Canadian politician and community activist. She was a longtime city councillor in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She was first elected to Toronto City Council in 1972, and served until 1985 when she ran ag ...

(reform) - 14,325 : David Smith - 11,297 : Larry Grossman - 9,127 :Jim Mills - 8,035 :William McKay - 1,399 :Morris Kestin - 1,334 :Alan Morrison - 1,329 :Richard Sommers - 818 :Sydney Zaidi - 605 :Alan Manington - 551 :John Houseman - 435 : John Ross Taylor - 323

East York East York is a district and former municipality within Toronto, Ontario, Canada. From 1967 to 1998, it was officially the Borough of East York, a borough within the upper-tier municipality of Metropolitan Toronto. The borough was dissolved ...

Mayor

* Willis Blair - 15,196 (57%) *Royden Brigham - 11,458 (43%) (Source: ''Toronto Star'', pg 12, December 5, 1972)

Etobicoke Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district and former city within Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west end, Etobicoke is bordered on the south by Lake Ontario, on the east by the Humber River (Ontario), Humber River, on the ...

Mayor

* Dennis Flynn - 28,126 (54.9%) *David Lacey - 21,634 (42.2%) *Reg Sammons - 1,484 (2.9%) (582 out of 610 polls)

Etobicoke Board of Control (4 elected)

*Bill Stockwell - 29,259 * Bruce Sinclair - 27,762 *E. H. Farrow - 22,616 *(incumbent)John Allen - 21,312 *(incumbent)John Carroll - 19,868 *Hugh MacGregor Griggs 16,705 *MacDonald 15,015 (582 out of 610 polls) (Source: "How the voting went throughout Etobicoke", ''Toronto Star'', pg 13, December 5, 1972)

North York North York is a former township and city and is now one of the six administrative districts of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the northern area of Toronto, centred around Yonge Street, north of Ontario Highway 401. It is bounded by ...

Mayor

Mel Lastman Melvin Douglas Lastman (March 9, 1933 – December 11, 2021) was a Canadian businessman and politician who served as the third mayor of North York from 1973 to 1997 and the 62nd mayor of Toronto from 1998 to 2003. He was the first person to s ...

- 48,328 *Paul Hunt - 36,380 *Andrew Fram - 2,536 *Rik Peletz - 1,264 (1033 out of 1075 polls) Lastman is elected mayor for the first time and serves until 1997.

North York Board of Control (4 elected)

Paul Godfrey Paul Victor Godfrey, CM, OOnt (born January 12, 1939) is a businessman and former Canadian politician. During his career, Godfrey was a North York alderman, Chairman of Metro Toronto, President of the ''Toronto Sun'' and head of the Toronto B ...

- 60,421 *John Williams - 33,843 *Alex McGivern - 30,713 *

Barbara Greene Barbara Greene (born 1 September 1945) is a former Canadian politician. She served in the House of Commons of Canada from 1988 to 1993 as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party. She was previously a municipal politician in North York ...

- 28,852 *Syd Moscoe - 23,129 *Joseph Gould - 20,075 *Ruby Richman - 17,861 *Joseph Morra - 14,596 *Sam Sherman - 10,784 *Malcolm Cairnduff - 6,291 *Ronald Premier - 4,329 Source:

was appointed to the Board of Control by North York Council in 1970, following the death of Controller John Booth.Godfrey captures vacant seat on North York Board of Control The Globe and Mail (1936-Current); Sep 26, 1970; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The Globe and Mail pg. 5 He was returned to the Board of Control in 1972, his first time being elected to the body. In 1973, he resigned to become Metro Chairman.

is elected in an upset victory after running to protest a by-law which made it illegal for unrelated roommates to share a house or apartment if the neighbourhood was zoned for single family dwellings. She is not only the first woman ever elected to North York's Board of Control but she and her roommate, Kate Hayhurst who ran for alderman and Betty Sutherland who was also elected as an alderman in 1972 are the first three women ever elected to North York council

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...

Mayor

* Paul Cosgrove - 33,488 (63.2%) *(incumbent) Robert W. White - 14,086 (28.6%) *Francis O'Donnell - 5,423 (10.2%) (735 of 855 polls)

Board of Control (4 elected)

*(incumbent) Gus Harris 34,030 *(incumbent) Ken Morrish 31,949 *(incumbent)Brian Harrison 28,324 *(incumbent)Karl Mallette 24,053 *John Wimbs 20,222 *Tom Rowland 14,705 *John Nowotny 7,714 *William T. Phipps 6,594 (735 of 855 polls)

Borough Council

* Ward 7 Ed Fulton

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

Mayor

*(incumbent) Phillip White (acclaimed) (Source: ''Toronto Star'', page 12, December 5, 1972)

Board of Control (2 elected)

*(incumbent)Douglas Saunders - 15,899 *(incumbent)James Trimbee - 14,054 *Rose Gallic - 5,163 (Source: ''Toronto Star'', page 12, December 5, 1972; "The Star's suggestions for Monday's elections", ''Toronto Star'', December 2, 1972, page 20)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toronto municipal election, 1972

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...

1972 elections in Canada

Municipal election In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct var ...

December 1972 in Canada