Mayoral candidate Gil Penalosa says he is dropping out of the race to become mayor of Toronto and is supporting Olivia Chow’s bid for the job. Penalosa, a progressive urbanist who came a distant second to John Tory when he ran against him in last year’s election, made the announcement Wednesday afternoon alongside MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam, who said they are also supporting Chow. “Olivia has the experience, values and the sense of urgency to make our city more inclusive and liveable for everyone,” Penalosa said in a statement. “Mayors can make a big difference in a city. To me, the choice could not be more clear. Olivia is the right person to bring positive, progressive change to our city.” Wong-Tam said they have many friends who are running, but feels that supporting Chow is what’s best for the city. “Olivia Chow has been a giant presence in my life since I was in public school. She’s helped create community services for working class kids like me to grow up strong and be able to give back to the city I love,” Wong-Tam said in a statement. Penalosa is the first recognizable name to withdraw from what is shaping up to be a very crowed race. His name was no longer listed on the city’s candidates page as of Wednesday afternoon. He said that while there are some other progressive voices in the race, “Olivia is a better team builder. She brings more people and more and I think that's what makes her very special.” Chow, who ran for the job back in 2014, announced Monday that she is taking another run at becoming mayor, adding a high-profile left-wing name to the race. “I'm grateful to have Gil’s support. His passion to make cities better for everyone is known around the world. We share the same progressive values and understand the need to build a Toronto where everyone belongs. Thank you,” Chow said in a tweet. Penalosa’s departure from the race leaves just 49 other contenders for the top job so far. The last day to register to run is May 12. Meanwhile a number of other candidates were busy hitting the campaign trail Wednesday. Josh Matlow announced today that if elected, he will make sure that all Toronto Public Library branches are open for at least a few hours on Sundays. He said the move would cost $1.5 million and would be funded through his proposed $115-million Community Health and Safety Fund. The announcement builds on an announcement earlier this week that he would open neighbourhood schools on evenings and weekends to operate as community centres. Meanwhile Ana Bailão spent the morning speaking with transit riders at Wellesley Station. She said it’s vital to engage voters in the race and to make sure that core TTC service runs smoothly. Anthony Furey also spent the morning talking with transit riders. He said “there is a general sense of decline on public transit” and added that if elected he would say no to people loitering or sleeping on the transit system. Brad Bradford made an announcement about a proposal to create “bail compliance units” in order to ensure that “that people out on bail abide by their court-mandated orders.” He said the move would cost $16 million a year and he would ask the province to pay for it as “follow through on public commitments to improve safety.”
