Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s nephew and former MPP, Michael Ford, is considering entering a potentially tight mayoral race between Olivia Chow and Brad Bradford.
Michael Ford, a former Toronto city councillor and MPP who is the nephew of Ontario Premier Doug Ford, says he’s seriously considering tossing his hat in the ring to become the city’s next mayor.
On Wednesday afternoon, Ford, who is also the nephew of former Toronto mayor Rob Ford, confirmed to CP24 that he is “giving it some strong and serious consideration.”
“Like many Torontonians we see that crime, congestion and skyrocketing property taxes are major issues that are top of mind for residents across our city,” he said in a written statement.
“This will no doubt be a pivotal election. Public service has always been an integral part of my life and it is for that reason that I am giving it some strong consideration.”
Toronto’s current mayor, Olivia Chow, has not yet committed to running again, while east-end Coun. Brad Bradford has signalled an intention to run. Former Toronto mayor John Tory has, however, ruled out running again.
Long political history
Ford, who went by the surname of his incarcerated father, Ennio Stirpe, until 2014, has a long political history that began that year when he registered as a Toronto City Council candidate in Ward 2, Etobicoke North.
He ultimately withdrew his candidacy after his uncle, Rob Ford, pulled out of the mayoral race amid a cancer diagnosis and opted to run in the ward.
Instead, Ford ran and was elected as a Toronto District School Board trustee in Etobicoke North. He held that role for two years until he resigned to run for councillor for Ward 2, a seat that was vacated due to the death of his uncle.
Ford, who was just 22 at that time, won that election handily with almost 70 per cent of the vote, defeating 11 other candidates.
He ran again in 2018 to represent the amalgamated Ward 1, also known as Etobicoke North, and won, beating long-time incumbent Vince Crisanti.
In June 2022, Ford made the leap to provincial politics when he successfully ran to represent York South-Weston for the Progressive Conservative Party. That month, he was appointed as Ontario’s minister of citizenship and multiculturalism.
Ford held those roles until Sept. 2024 when he announced that he was taking a leave of absence to “prioritize” his health and well-being.
He did not seek re-election in the February 2025 provincial election and was most recently a registered lobbyist at Toronto City Hall, representing cybersecurity company Protexxa Inc. Ford is currently the principal of the lobbying firm MDF Strategies.
With files from CTV News Toronto’s Phil Tsekouras
