Wong-Tam endorses Toronto Centre candidate Stikuts in municipal election
Posted August 20, 2026 8:02 am.
Last Updated August 20, 2026 1:18 pm.
MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam announced Thursday they are endorsing Ward 13 Toronto Centre candidate Curran Stikuts in the upcoming municipal election.
Wong-Tam, a former city councillor for that ward who made the move to Queen’s Park in 2022 after 12 years at City Hall, was joined by Stikuts, as well as labour and community leaders, for the news conference.
“I have done the councillor’s job, I know what it takes and I know exactly who I believe is ready to do this job next. I am endorsing Curran Stikuts to be the next city councillor in Ward 13,” Wong-Tam said. “Curran has lived and worked in our community for 15 years. He knows the business owners, he knows the community and health-care workers by first name.”
Wong-Tam also confirmed they are not running for city council.
“Although I am not coming back to City Hall, and I know I am disappointing some who’ve been calling and texting me, I am not going to let the people of Toronto Centre down. I owe them my absolute honesty. They’ve been asking me who I believe should be the next city councillor in Ward 13. That person is Curran Stikuts.”
During the 2022 Toronto election, Wong-Tam had endorsed Coun. Chris Moise, a former Toronto District School Board trustee. Moise is running for re-election in that ward. The MPP was asked why they decided to change their endorsement in this election.
“One of the things I’m seeing is a level of disappointment from constituents from many corners of the ward,” said Wong-Tam. “There’s no secret here, I belong to the party that works with labour, we have always stood for workers, so this is where my support will be.”
Wong-Tam added that they have worked with Stikuts and have seen him do the “heavy lifting.”
“I am endorsing Curran based on his strengths and the fact that I know he can do the job …The current councillor has disappointed some folks in my community, but more importantly, I am endorsing Curran because I know he can do the job.”
“I think that it would be fair that if residents who have been inviting me to come back to City Hall, who have been calling and texting and emailing, enthusiastically and energetically, asking me to come back to City Hall, if they were happy with the representation they have today, they would not be asking me to leave my job and my role at Queen’s Park to come back to City Hall to re-represent them at the municipal election.”
CityNews reached out to Moise on several occasions for comment but has not heard back.
Meanwhile, the deadline to register in the municipal election is 2 p.m. on Friday.
On Wednesday, long-time incumbent Coun. Paula Fletcher said she had withdrawn her nomination and will no longer be running for re-election in Ward 14 Toronto-Danforth in the upcoming election. Sara Ehrhardt, a public school trustee for Toronto-Danforth, announced plans to register as a candidate for councillor in that ward.
Earlier this week, former Toronto councillor Mike Layton announced he is looking to make a return to municipal politics and will run in Ward 11 at University—Rosedale — a ward he represented before stepping down in 2022.
Former federal Beaches-East York MP Nate Erskine-Smith is running to represent his former constituency at City Hall, Ward 19.
All 444 municipalities in Ontario will each hold elections on Oct. 26 for mayor, councillor and school board trustee positions.
