{"id":72116,"date":"2026-09-08T09:30:03","date_gmt":"2026-09-08T13:30:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/?p=72116"},"modified":"2026-09-08T09:30:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T13:30:10","slug":"election-2026-lets-talk-about-local-democracy-in-toronto","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2026\/09\/08\/election-2026-lets-talk-about-local-democracy-in-toronto\/","title":{"rendered":"Election 2026: Let’s talk about local democracy in Toronto"},"content":{"rendered":"

co-written by Nick Vlahos, Patricia Wood and Gabriel Eidelman<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Housing. Transit. Crime. Taxes. Bike lanes. Billy Bishop Airport. Almost every major issue facing Toronto turns on the same question. Who should decide: the City, the Province, or the federal government?<\/p>\n

\u201cLocal\u201d decisions have become battles over jurisdiction instead of debates about what is best for Toronto and its residents.<\/p>\n

As Torontonians prepare to vote in municipal elections this October, we should be asking every candidate, and ourselves, a simple question: what should local democracy look like?<\/p>\n

That question sits at the heart of the City of Toronto\u2019s Municipal Autonomy and Effective Local Governance Program Advisory Body (MAPAB), whose final report was presented to Toronto\u2019s Executive Committee on July 21<\/a>, its final meeting before the election.<\/p>\n

For eight months in 2025 and 2026, the three of us served on this advisory committee, alongside other experts and local community advocates with interests in municipal governance, constitutional law, and civic engagement.<\/p>\n

Together, we examined Toronto’s relationship with the Province of Ontario, compared the City’s governance with cities across Canada and internationally, explored legal pathways for strengthening municipal autonomy, and considered how to ensure a democratic process would guide any future discussion of a city charter.<\/p>\n

We have two broad conclusions:<\/p>\n

First, Toronto requires greater municipal autonomy and stronger, more inclusive practices of local democracy. Giving City Hall more power is not, by itself, the same thing as strengthening democracy, and making it more representative, participatory and accountable. These goals must be pursued together.<\/p>\n

Second, we need stronger political institutions and norms that give all municipalities<\/em>, not just Toronto, a more meaningful voice in decision-making. Government relationships and authorities are unclear and out of balance.<\/p>\n

As it stands, the City must regularly ask permission or seek clarification from the provincial government before adopting local policies and programs. Information provided by the City Clerk\u2019s Office indicates that City Council has sought permission, clarification, or legislative changes from the Government of Ontario more than two dozen times during the 2022\u20132026 term, while the province has also intervened directly in local decisions concerning planning, development rules, and transportation policy. Ultimately, Toronto\u2019s authority remains subject to provincial oversight and unilateral intervention.<\/p>\n

This is not effective local government. We need a more defined, balanced arrangement. In the long run, our report identifies a constitutionally protected city charter as the most secure pathway to greater autonomy. That would require negotiation with the province and a single-province constitutional amendment. But there is a lot we can and should do in the meanwhile.<\/p>\n

The City of Toronto Act was intended to give Toronto broader powers, but it did not change the fundamental relationship with the province. Further statutory and institutional reforms could produce a more balanced relationship, even if they cannot provide the security of constitutional protection. Our report is not a blueprint demanding a single outcome. It is an invitation to think more carefully about how local democracy should work in one of North America’s largest cities.<\/p>\n

Greater autonomy does not<\/em> mean complete independence. Toronto cannot, and should not, shield every decision it makes from provincial or federal involvement. Like every municipality in Canada, Toronto lacks the financial resources to solve its challenges on its own.<\/p>\n

Moreover, many of the city\u2019s biggest challenges can only be addressed through cooperation with our neighbours in the region. Following the 1998 amalgamation of the municipalities comprising Metro Toronto into the City of Toronto, there were a few attempts<\/a> to create more systematic forms of regional governance, but they have not produced a durable solution. We need better ways for mayors and councils across the GTA to work together.<\/p>\n

Public transit, for example, makes the problem obvious. Millions of trips cross municipal boundaries, while responsibility is divided among municipalities, the province, Metrolinx, and other agencies. Metrolinx, in particular, lacks the direct political accountability and public accessibility found in municipal institutions such as the TTC Board of Commissioners. There is no durable, accountable forum through which GTA municipalities collectively coordinate and govern transit across the region.<\/p>\n

We should therefore think carefully about which decisions are best made locally, which require shared responsibility, and how governments can work together more effectively. The goal should be to build more balanced relationships between City Hall, Queen\u2019s Park, Ottawa, and our municipal neighbours.<\/p>\n

Toronto’s governance debate isn’t peculiar to Toronto. It is part of a broader question confronting both small and large cities about how power is organized, how residents are represented, and how cities work with other governments. Chicago, for example, is debating state legislation that would allow it to establish a charter commission and put a new governing charter before voters.<\/p>\n

We also need to talk about what, and who,<\/em> we mean when we say \u201clocal.\u201d<\/p>\n

That starts with representation itself. Since the province reduced Toronto City Council from a planned 47 wards to 25 in 2018, the average ward population has grown from roughly 61,000 to more than 116,000 residents. That makes it considerably harder for councilors to maintain meaningful relationships with the communities they represent.<\/p>\n

Those communities are pretty diverse, too. While Toronto has good things to say about social equity, it has struggled to ensure that residents who experience marginalization based on social identities, immigration status, or abilities, are truly and fairly involved in local democracy.<\/p>\n

Public engagement includes the right of residents to participate in formal consultations and to bring their own issues to their representatives, not merely to \u2018approve\u2019 or witness Council approving decisions already made.  Too often, public engagement occurs downstream, after priorities have been set and solutions have taken shape. Moreover, meaningful public engagement cannot be reduced to a standard survey followed by limited, often unrepresentative consultations. There are many other possible options for engagement to be empowered, layered, inclusive, and accessible. Plain-language materials, translated resources, and accessible formats are essential to informed participation.<\/p>\n

Such practices are directly connected to any plans for a city charter: the process by which a charter is created or revised carries as much democratic weight as the document itself.<\/p>\n

An important conclusion of our MAPAB work is that if Toronto ever pursues a city charter, its legitimacy cannot rest solely with the Province or Toronto City Council. It must also be built through inclusive and robust public participation and deliberation that goes well beyond the \u201ctown hall\u201d info session.<\/p>\n

Meaningful public engagement must begin before solutions are drafted. Residents should have opportunities to learn about the issues, deliberate with one another, hear different perspectives, and understand the trade-offs involved in different approaches.<\/p>\n

Just as importantly, governments must be clear from the outset about how public input will influence the final outcome. Without full transparency, any push for greater local autonomy risks deepening the public\u2019s frustration, cynicism, and distrust of public institutions.<\/p>\n

The MAPAB report offers a foundation for these conversations. Executive Committee directed City staff to return in 2027 with an analysis of the report\u2019s findings and recommendations. But it is up to all of us, elected officials, candidates, and residents alike, to take it further and build a stronger and more democratic future for Toronto.<\/p>\n

The Council Torontonians elect this October will inherit this conversation. Mayoral and Council candidates should have something intelligent to say during the election campaign about specific ideas for how and where they will work with others, and how they will make sure all voices are heard.<\/p>\n

If their answer is “hold a town hall,” we hope you will tell them that is not good enough.<\/p>\n

photo by David Ing (cc)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

\n

Nick Vlahos is Managing Director of the Center for Democracy Innovation. Patricia Wood is Professor of Geography at York University. Gabriel Eidelman is Associate Professor at the University of Toronto\u2019s Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

co-written by Nick Vlahos, Patricia Wood and Gabriel Eidelman Housing. Transit. Crime. Taxes. Bike lanes. Billy Bishop Airport. Almost every major issue facing Toronto turns on the same question. Who should decide: the City, the Province, or the federal government? \u201cLocal\u201d decisions have become battles over jurisdiction instead of debates about what is best forContinue reading “Election 2026: Let’s talk about local democracy in Toronto”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8381,"featured_media":72122,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[22482],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-72116","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-elections"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nElection 2026: Let's talk about local democracy in Toronto - Spacing Toronto<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/toronto\/2026\/09\/08\/election-2026-lets-talk-about-local-democracy-in-toronto\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Election 2026: Let's talk about local democracy in Toronto - Spacing Toronto\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"co-written by Nick Vlahos, Patricia Wood and Gabriel Eidelman Housing. 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