Election 2026: Issues & Influencers
For every municipal election since we started Spacing, we’ve published a special election-focused issue in advance of the polls. This year, we decided to do something a little different. Rather than look into the policies around key city issues, we’ve cast our gaze on the people and organizations who influence those issues.
While they may not make conventional power rankings, the people and groups we profile in this issue make a fundamental difference. They will shape the discussion during the election, bringing up vital issues for candidates to address. And they will also shape the direction of Toronto’s government once a new city council is elected, influencing the decisions, motions, and votes of both new and returning members.
In our front section, meanwhile, we mark the 70th anniversary of the provincial blue heritage plaques program and the 50th anniversary of the opening of the CN Tower, and welcome science writer Dan Falk with a lament over the demolition of the planetarium.
We hope this issue will be a guide both to your decisions in the election, and to observing and getting involved with how the municipal government we choose evolves over the next four years.
