Victoria Silman | Assistant News Editor
Featured Image: Elections were held October 22, and many students were upset they were unable to vote outside their riding. | Fatema Ali
On October 22, voters lined up at polling stations to appoint their new municipal representatives. It was the first election since the provincial government passed Bill 5, which reduced city council from 47 wards to 25.
John Tory was re-elected as Toronto’s Mayor with a historic 479,659 votes—63.5 per cent.
York’s Ward 7 candidate, Anthony Perruzza, was re-elected as a City Councillor, with 8,336 total ballots—36.8 percent of the vote. His competitor, Giorgio Mammalloti, came in a close second, with 5,625 votes—24.8 per cent.
Perruzza is a long-time politician, having served as city Councillor for North York from 1988 to 1990, a member of the Provincial Parliament from 1990 to 1995, and eventually elected a member of Toronto City Council in 2006. He is also a former York student, and was heavily involved in the subway extension to the university.
In Vaughan, a candidate heavily involved in the fight to bring back YRT service to the university is Ward 5 City Councillor winner, Alan Shefman, who won 55.54 per cent of the vote with a 6,769 ballots cast.
Regarding his bid to reinstate YRT service to the university, Councillor Shefman explains: “Just before we broke for the election, Vaughan Council approved a motion asking that the service to York be reinstated immediately.
“Since we have seen no positive reaction to that motion, we need to consider how we escalate the issue – perhaps we need the province to step in,” he continues.
A voting station was set up at the university inside the New Student Centre; however, many students were unable to vote there, as they reside in other wards. Students have lamented the fact that voting is often difficult for those who commute to campus, because the voting station at York was dedicated to those living within Ward 7.
Komal Kalia, a first-year student studying the master of management program at Schulich, states: “As a commuter, I would have preferred to exercise my right to vote on the York campus to avoid the hassle of commuting home early to reach the polls in time.”
Despite the low turnout at York, students do believe voting is an important activity for young adults. Stacey Herrera, a third-year philosophy student, who also was unable to vote, states: “Even though I didn’t vote or follow politics, I do feel that it is very important as a young adult to vote and become more involved in the politics of our city, because it directly affects us.
“We are the future work force, and by voting, we are shaping the government and society for our future. It also can allow us to create a government shaped by the millennial way of thinking, as opposed to the traditional and old mentality of today’s politics,” she adds.
At the time of publication, Councillor Perruzza could not be reached for comment.
