'Big shoes to fill': Mike Ford wins byelection to succeed Rob Ford as councillor

Four months after the death of former Toronto mayor and longtime Ward 2 councillor Rob Ford, his 22-year-old nephew, Michael Ford, has won the byelection to succeed him with 69.6 per cent of the vote.

Runners-up Jeff Canning and Christopher Strain took 20.4 per cent and 3.8 per cent of the vote respectively. 

Asked after the win what advice his late uncle would give him, the younger Ford said he would be "struck down by a lightning bolt" if he didn't return a constituent's phone call. Ford said his top priorities in Ward 2 Etobicoke North will be crime reduction and customer service.

• Voters go to the polls to elect new councillor in Rob Ford's old ward
• Candidates make last push in byelection to succeed Rob Ford
• Michael Ford will seek uncle Rob Ford's former council seat

"I will be at your door to serve you, just like my Great Uncle Doug has done and my Uncle Rob," Ford said. "Tonight more than ever we miss him."

'The voice of the suburbs'

Asked if it was the Ford name that led to the byelection win, Doug Ford said, "I think he worked hard for it," adding that he stood back from the campaign and wanted his nephew to get the job done. 

"Now Michael has big shoes to fill and he's going to fill them," he said. 

"His uncle taught him well," said Renata Ford, widow of the former mayor and councillor. "I know Rob's up there saying he's really proud of him, and I'm proud of him. It's a sad day but a happy day too."

Coun. Giorgio Mammoliti, who represents an adjacent ward, said, "This isn't just a win for the Fords, it's not just a win for the community that Michael now represents and certainly not just a win for Michael. Michael is carrying on a legacy and he's carrying on the voice of the suburbs as well."

Toronto Mayor John Tory also congratulated Ford, saying he looks forward to working with him.

Ward 2 was the stronghold of so-called Ford Nation — the term many use to describe the intensely loyal voters who supported Rob Ford through all his highly publicized personal and political scandals as mayor.

Ford resigned from his seat as school board trustee in Ward 1 less than halfway through his term to campaign for the council seat, promising to carry on his "family's legacy," while many of the 11 other candidates campaigned on a platform of change. 

Carrying on 'family's legacy'

"I was born in Ward 2, I grew up here and I hope to serve the hard-working residents of North Etobicoke for many years to come," Michael Ford said in a statement as he resigned from his post in May.

Like his uncle, Ford vowed to respond to all pleas for help from constituents.

"I will call you back, I will return your messages, and I will come straight to your door to make sure you get the excellent level of service you deserve," his website says.

A member of the Ford family has represented Ward 2 since 2000: first Rob Ford, then his brother Doug Ford, who was Ward 2 councillor during Rob Ford's turbulent mayoralty, which began in 2010.

Rob Ford ran in the ward and won the seat again in 2014, after his cancer diagnosis forced him to drop out of the mayoral election, eventually won by John Tory.

Many in the ward remember Rob Ford as fiercely committed to his constituents, making an effort to personally return every call he received, even visiting homes to look into residents' complaints and giving out his home phone number.