Ford Takes Office As Toronto Mayor

The controversial city councillor will be sworn in amidst protests at City Hall on Wednesday.

Hundreds of activists are expected to picket the ceremony to swear-in Rob Ford as Toronto’s 64th mayor today. After a bitterly contested municipal election, many Torontonians are angry over the budget-slashing former Etobicoke councillor’s plan to scrap the light rail Transit City project and replace it with a subway system. Parts of Transit City, which is joint-funded by the provincial and federal governments, have already broken ground, and provincial Transportation Minister Kathleen Wynne said that the city will be on the hook for the costs of any cancelled contracts. The province has already spent $130 million on the project and Queen’s Park has signed contracts worth $1.3 billion.