Ford's move is a blow to democracy

Shazam!

Premier Doug Ford is so powerful, he can pass a law and his political enemies will disappear.

That’s what I learned Friday from the chilling news that Ford’s Conservative government would cut the number of Toronto city councillors in half and end direct election of four regional council chairs.

This, announced mere hours before the deadline for municipal candidates to sign up, was designed to create maximum chaos.

Ford’s contempt for Toronto city council is well known. After his changes, the city will have one councillor for more than 100,000 people. That’s the equivalent of giving all of Waterloo Region just five councillors.

“There isn’t anybody I know who wouldn’t want me to trade in a bunch of politicians for $25 million (in savings),” he said, as if he was talking about used cars.

As for ditching directly elected regional chairs, Ford’s move disabled two of his political foes: former Progressive Conservative leader Patrick Brown, who was running for chair of Peel Region, and former Liberal transportation minister Steven del Duca, who was running for chair of York Region.

With a dexterity worthy of Bugs Bunny, Brown immediately pivoted to run for mayor of Brampton instead. He filed his application with minutes to go before the deadline.

But the problems of Ford’s actions run deeper.

The regional chair is the most important and influential elected official in the municipality. Removing the right of voters to elect that person directly is profoundly anti-democratic.

If voters choose a politician, he or she is accountable to those voters. If elected councillors choose the regional chair, the chair is controlled by those councillors. He or she walks on eggshells every time there’s a need to take a strong stand — or call out bad behaviour.

Yet that is what Ford decided to do in four municipalities: York, Peel, Niagara and Muskoka, with a combined population of about three million.

Three other regional municipalities — Waterloo, Durham and Halton — have chairs that have been directly elected for some time. They’ll be left alone, for now.

But, perhaps, we got spared only because Michael Harris didn’t run for regional chair.

Harris, former Conservative MPP for Kitchener-Conestoga, was turfed from caucus back in April on trumped-up sexting allegations. He’d been a strong ally of Ford’s rival for the leadership, so when Ford won, Harris was an outsider.

The ousted Harris is now running for a seat on Waterloo regional council. Had he gone for chair instead, Waterloo may have met the same fate.

How can Ford change the rules of the game in the middle of the game, with no consultation? Because he’s the premier, with a majority government in a parliamentary system. He can do just about anything he wants.

Municipalities exist at the pleasure of the province. Until the next election, Ford is the province.

He could probably merge Brampton with Toronto, just to show Brown who’s boss.

Which municipal official will dare speak against him now?