1958 Toronto municipal election
Municipal elections were held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on December 1, 1958. Four year incumbent mayor Nathan Phillips won reelection against Controller Ford Brand, who was supported by the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation and Toronto Labour Council, and Controller Joseph Cornish.
Toronto mayor
One of the central issues was the proposal to develop the south side of Queen Street across from the new Toronto City Hall.
- Results
- Nathan Phillips - 53,776
- Ford Brand - 30,736
- Joseph Cornish - 17,089
Plebiscite
A vote was held on extending the municipal franchise to all people who are aged 21 and over who are British subjects and have lived in the city for at least one year. At the time of the plebiscite, the right to vote was restricted to property owners and people living in two or more rooms with an assessed value of $400 or more. A similar plebiscite had been held in 1956 and passed by a margin of 56,000 to 26,000 but when the city asked the provincial government to pass legislation enacting the change, the government instead passed legislation allowing each municipality in the province to hold a referendum and so Toronto was required to put the question on the ballot again.[1]
- Extending the franchise
- Yes - 59,729
- No - 22,436
Source: [2]
Board of Control
The two sitting controllers running for reelection to the Board of Control, Jean Newman and William Allen, easily won reelection. Newman topped the polls for the second time and after the election she immediately announced her intention to run for mayor in 1960. The decision of Brand and Cornish to run for mayor opened two vacancies on the board. These were won by conservative east end Alderman Donald Summerville and Co-operative Commonwealth Federation-backed Alderman William Dennison. Only narrowly losing was former Toronto mayor Leslie Saunders. Other notable candidates included former Controller Roy Belyea, Alderman Ross Parry, and anti-Blue Laws advocate James Karfilis.
The most senior two Controllers in terms of votes also sat on Metro Toronto Council.
- Results
- Jean Newman (incumbent) - 59,243
- William Allen (incumbent) - 52,462
- Donald Summerville - 49,476
- William Dennison - 33,612
- Leslie Saunders - 33,469
- Roy Belyea - 27,024
- Ross Parry - 25,195
- James Karfilis - 10,971
- Harry Bradley - 10,499
- Ross Dowson - 4,539
- George Rolland - 3,834
City council
Two aldermen were elected per Ward. The alderman with the most votes was declared Senior Alderman and sat on both Toronto City Council and Metro Council.
- Ward 1 (Riverdale)
- Ken Waters (incumbent) - 7,675
- Fred Beavis (incumbent) - 5,540
- William Lang - 4,321
- Peter Metheus - 1,159
- Joe Rosenblatt - 521
- Ward 2 (Regent Park and Rosedale)
- May Birchard (incumbent) - 3,355
- Margaret Campbell - 3,295
- Michael Grayson - 2,624
- Stanley Price - 2,552
- Douglas Shaw - 1,138
- George Taylor - 925
- Edwards - 881
- Hugh Dowson - 520
- Ward 3 (West Downtown and Summerhill)
- William Archer - 3,307
- Charles Tidy - 2,601
- John MacVicar (incumbent) - 1,980
- Gordon Peck - 1,480
- Richard James - 1,288
- Ralph Meakes - 576
- James Sanderson - 308
- Ward 4 (The Annex, Kensington Market and Garment District)
- Herbert Orliffe (incumbent) - 4,256
- Francis Chambers (incumbent) - 3,600
- David Rotenberg - 2,631
- Mark Frank - 802
- Albert Finkelstein - 794
- Dorothy Cureatz - 500
- Ward 5 (Trinity-Bellwoods and Little Italy)
- Philip Givens (incumbent) - 4,897
- Harold Menzies (incumbent) - 3,866
- Louis Lockhart - 2,085
- Joseph Piccininni - 1,268
- Peter D'Agostino - 1,086
- Ben Nobleman - 823
- Paul Pauk - 792
- John Anture - 541
- John Mracek - 488
- Anthony Fascioni - 478
- Ward 6 (Davenport and Parkdale)
- May Robinson (incumbent) - 8,492
- Frank Clifton (incumbent) - 8,035
- George Jackson - 2,761
- Pauline Miles - 2,037
- William Stevens - 2,008
- Kenneth Sutherland - 1,607
- Ward 7 (Bloor West Village)
- Mary Temple - 4,339
- William Davidson (incumbent) - 4,211
- Thomas Wilson (incumbent) - 3,009
- John O'Shea - 1,802
- William Otis - 480
- Ward 8 (The Beaches)
- A.G. Cranham (incumbent) - 9,216
- Alex Hodgins - 7,516
- Chris Stavro - 5,276
- Stanley Baker - 2,691
- Edward Cox - 2,367
- John Square - 1,341
- Ward 9 (North Toronto)
- Frank Nash (incumbent) - acclaimed
- Kenneth Ostrander (incumbent) - acclaimed
Nash chosen Metro Councillor
Results are taken from the December 2, 1958 Toronto Star and might not exactly match final tallies.
Suburbs
Forest Hill
- Reeve
- (x)Laurie T. Simonsky (acclaimed)
New Toronto
- Mayor
- (x)Donald Russell (acclaimed)
Scarborough
- Reeve
- (x)Albert Campbell - 12,153
- Augustus Harris - 6,710
- Taylor - 6,686
- Broley - 1,581
Source: [3]
Swansea
- Reeve
- (x)Dorothy Hague (acclaimed)
References
- Election Coverage. Toronto Star. December 2, 1958
- "Extend Vote?: Electors Asked Again", The Globe and Mail (1936-2016); Toronto, Ont. [Toronto, Ont]28 Nov 1958: 13.
- "Vote on Question", The Globe and Mail (1936-2016); Toronto, Ont. [Toronto, Ont]02 Dec 1958: 4.
- "Suburban Election Results", The Globe and Mail (1936-2016); Toronto, Ont. [Toronto, Ont]02 Dec 1958: 8.