With the municipal election about four months away, Toronto’s electors are telling pollsters we are very unhappy.

On almost every question we are less content with local government than our cousins in the 905 area code.Torontonians’ rates of satisfaction are lower whether we are asked about public transit and the road network, or parks and recreation programs, or garbage collection and litter clean up. The only bright spots are in arts and culture.

When asked about their representatives, Torontonians have grim plans for their visit to the voting booth. Elsewhere most voters plan to re-elect incumbents, while here in Toronto it is the opposite.

Even without Mayor Miller on the ballot, most still expressed the desire to defeat him.

Not content with challenging sitting politicians, the majority of Torontonians are prepared to take on the pundits. Majorities favour positions such as opposing tolls to pay for subways, putting a majority of outsiders on the TTC board and cutting the number of councillors in half.

On the positive side, electors are clear about what matters to them. By far the most important largest issue is transit.

In second place comes a cluster of concerns around municipal finance and taxes. Environmental issues are third, closely followed by roads and infrastructure. Dozens of other problems, including crime, are the priority of much smaller groups.

Some of the poll results show our practical side. While we will judge candidates on visionary subjects like transit and the environment, over three-quarters of us want to hear how platforms will be financed.

What does it mean? Election day is still a long way off so results are hard to predict. But even if the details change over the next few months, our dissatisfaction is so deep that it will probably impact election day.

It’s not surprising that candidates supporting radical departures from current policies are finding resonance among the public.

A majority of those who recall last summer’s strike are in favour of outsourcing city services. TTC users are looking for changes well beyond a public relations campaign. Once it was an honour to be known as the mayor’s deputy; it is now an electoral liability.

Yet by many measures our sour outlook is an overreaction. Credit rating agencies have confidence in city finances. Over the last term, scandal was found in Mississauga and Vaughan, not in Toronto. Our low residential taxes remain the envy of our neighbours. Even our much-maligned environmental policies have made a positive difference.By not considering both the achievements as well as the shortfalls of the past eight years, we risk throwing out positive ideas and momentum in areas that are still important to the majority of Torontonians.

Unless we regain our balance by election day, our new city administration will be more of a reaction to the past than building on what we have achieved.

- David Soknacki

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