‘It breaks my heart to leave:’ Embattled John Tory bids final farewell as Toronto’s mayor

One week after shocking the city with an announcement that he had an “inappropriate relationship” with someone who used to work on his staff, John Tory bid a final farewell as Toronto’s mayor.

In a farewell letter to the citizens of Toronto, Tory said while it breaks his heart to leave this way, leaving was the right thing to do.

“I’ve had a number of jobs in my life. I’ve been a lawyer, a political advisor, a corporate executive, a broadcaster, and the commissioner of a professional sports league,” said Tory. “But the career I wanted the most, and the one I was privileged enought to have, was in public service. Because it is being part of something bigger than yourself.

“For me, Toronto has been my cause.”

As one of his last items of business as mayor, Tory confirmed that he had secured $235 million from the province as part of a 2022 agreement to make up for the budget shortfall due to COVID-19.

Tory said while the reason for his departure will rank high when it comes to how he will be remembered, he was hopeful that some of the other things he set out to accomplish “will stand out.”

“That we are finally back to building transit …that the government is back in the business of getting housing built so that people can afford a decent place to live,” he said. “That we keep taxes affordable while also making critical investments in front line services.”

“But more than anything what I hope is remembered of my time is that I did the work.”

After reading his statement, Tory stepped away from the podium without taking any questions.

Tory’s resignation took effect at 5 p.m. Friday with Deputy Mayor Jennifer McKelvie taking the reigns on an interim basis. She reiterated again she won’t be running to replace him.

McKelvie, at times sounding emotional, thanked Tory for his many years of service.

“I have a lot of respect for Mayor Tory, he’s the man that I admire a lot,” she said. “I admire his sense of duty, his sense of honour. I admire how he’s taken full responsibility and how he’s resigned.”

McKelvie said she would work to continue to deliver on the priorities which Tory advanced when he won a third term as mayor last October as well as coordinating what she called the “largest byelection ever held in Canada.”

Toronto’s next council meeting on March 29 will see the city clerk bring a report that allows councillors to formally declare the mayor’s office vacant and to pass a bylaw to initiate a byelection.

A nomination period would open the next day and last anywhere between 30 and 60 days, with the mayoral byelection held 45 days after that.

“This is a great city. We have great challenges and we need to tackle those right now,” said McKelvie.

John Tory’s letter to Toronto