What you need to know about the race in Ward 9 - Davenport

A Toronto voting location can be seen above. (CTV News Toronto)

The race for Ward 9 (Davenport) is wide open this year.

Incumbent Ana Bailao has represented Davenport at Toronto city council since 2010. This spring, however, Bailao announced she would not seek re-election, joining the ranks of six other Toronto city council incumbents who have chosen not to run again.

There are a total of nine candidates running for election in Davenport this year.

Alejandra Bravo is likely the most well-known candidate in Ward 9’s race. Bravo ran for MP in Davenport in the 2021 with the NDP, placing second with 19,695 votes to Liberal Julie Dzerowicz.

If elected, she’s promising to end exclusionary zoning, build new affordable housing, provide stronger protections from renovation and rent increases, champion free transit and implement better biking infrastructure.

Many of Bravo’s competitors are experienced and have long been involved in the Davenport and wider communities.

Grant Gonzales is a public affairs professional who’s frequently worked with community organizations and non-profits throughout his career. Gonzales has held many roles within the community, most recently as a co-chair at Pride Toronto. He also served as director and president of the Davenport-Perth Neighbourhood and Community Health Centre.

Gonzales lists housing affordability, transit and road safety, and serving vulnerable and marginalized communities as his top priorities. If elected, he’s promising to build co-ops and affordable housing, move ahead with the construction of the Bloor-Lansdowne and Old Weston-St. Clair GO Stations, and expand the Toronto Community Crisis Centre.

Another candidate seeking election in Davenport, Shakar Jamal, has worked as a union representative for the United Steelworkers since 2015.

Jamal earned his master’s degree at The London School of Economics and, in 2017, co-founded BetterTO, an organization that hosts quarterly municipal discussions. He has also previously worked at Public Health Ontario as a program coordinator.

Jamal says his platform prioritizes affordable housing, workers’ and labour rights, improving transit systems, and reassessing the police budget.

Other names on the ballot include Simon Fogel, Mosea Houghron, Steven Leca, Jacob Maydanski, Lazare Shorter, and Allie Spencer.

DAVENPORT AT A GLANCE

Population: 108,470

Average number of people per household: 2.36

Median age: 36.7 years

Population growth over last decade: 3.7 per cent

Visible minorities: 32 per cent

Average household income: $80,807 (Toronto average is $102,721)