Vaughan on first elections since Jackson

The City Above Toronto has candidates carefully preparing for next November's votes

No fewer than 15 candidates ran in the last by-election, a clear sign of interest in the City of Vaughan, but the seats are few (the mayor, three regional councillors - one just replaced - and five city councillors) and this will make for a hot election.
Moreover, next November's election will be unusual as it will be the first without Lorna Jackson, after 21 years of her uninterrupted rule. Following her death last year, the mayoralty passed to Michael Di Biase, who will now run for mayor boasting the results he achieved during this period.
Some claim that Jackson's daughter, Linda, currently councillor for Ward 2, would be ready to follow in her mother's footsteps, but other people are advising her instead to run for one of the regional councillor seats.
What's more, York Region has just granted the citizens of Vaughan a third councillor. The new seat could turn out to be a real wild card for the next election, being coveted by many and freeing new paths to a seat in the City Council.
The possibility of Linda Jackson running for that seat is exactly what would convince Tony Carella to run for Ward 2. "In the last by-election," says Carella, "I came a close second. If Linda does not run I would be in the best position, but I do not rule out running anyway, I'm considering my options. But it's too early for a final decision yet."
Everybody's contemplating, but nobody declared yet. In any case, the tension is palpable, and electoral alliances are being formed amid espressos and doughnuts.
Someone who seems hard at work is Nadia Magarelli, who would like to challenge Bernie Di Vona in Ward 3. Di Vona is currently at the centre of an investigation about a Vaughan Hydro cheque, which will leave him weakened even if he was to come out of it exonerated. "There is still a lot more to do for improving the services offered to our people," says Di Vona, "and I will not refuse the challenge."
On the other hand, Mario G. Racco is not even thinking about the November elections; his thoughts are currently focused on the campaign for the Provincial Parliament, where he is running for the Liberals. He will have to run against Tina Molinari, and the battle will be very hot; Molinari starts with a ministerial post in her bag, but Racco is so popular that he was acclaimed, rather than elected, in the last municipal election.
Several candidates would like to replace him in Ward 4, but once again the cognoscenti are ready with an answer: his wife will run. Racco swears that "we never talked about this, not even jokingly, but my wife clearly has a long experience in community work and could be an excellent representative for the citizens of our ward."
Many candidates are warming their engines, ready to start when the moment will come: Nick Pinto, Peter Meffe, Francis Romano, and Aldo Infusino are being named, and in several cases their resumes include previous political experiences.
"There is some dissension in the Council," admits Racco, and in the next few months this could grow worse, as an effect of the political manoeuvring in preparation for the election.
The City, in fact, is planning ambitious projects with a strong economic impact,from the new Civic Centre to the hospital, in addition to the Corporate Centre and residential developments. Choosing one area over another will deeply affect the urban appearance of Vaughan for decades, impacting on traffic, property values, and relative speed of development of each area.
Finally, there is the appointment of the new City Manager, the veritable deus ex machina of any city administration. The council is currently assessing candidates both from the outside and the inside of the City, and the final choice will strongly influence the planning of works for 2003, when incumbent councillors will need every bit of "this is what we did" as a tool for winning voters' trust.

Publication Date: 2003-02-09
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=2328