Meet Your Candidate: Olivia Chow
Ahead of Toronto’s 2026 mayoral election, Street Voices connected with the candidates to ask 8 key questions. Here are their unedited responses.
Source: Office of Mayor Olivia Chow
Who’s running to lead Toronto — and what do they have to say about the issues affecting your everyday life?
Ahead of the Oct. 26 municipal election, Street Voices emailed 8 questions to the top 5 mayoral candidates, according to a poll in September. The questions were all the same for fairness, and they touched on issues including affordability, housing, youth employment, transit, support for Black and racialized communities, and funding for BIPOC artists.
Three candidates have responded: Brad Bradford, Olivia Chow, and Sarah McVie. Chris Alexander dropped out of the race as of Oct. 6, and Odessa Paloma Parker dropped out on Oct. 21.
Here’s what the candidates who responded have to say about the issues that matter to you. Please note that we have not edited their answers.
We are posting the candidates in alphabetical order by last name: Brad Bradford, Olivia Chow, and Sarah McVie.
Olivia Chow
1. Why are you running for mayor, and what are your top three priorities if elected?
I'm running because this election is a choice: we can keep moving forward toward a more affordable, caring and safer city, or go back to cutting the services people rely on. As mayor, in less than a full term, I froze TTC fares, fed 330,000 kids in school, and got thousands of affordable homes under construction. My top three priorities are making Toronto more affordable, more caring and safer. We're turning the corner as a city, and I'm asking for four more years to finish the job.
2. This city continues to become unaffordable for young people and working families. What will you do to address this?
I’m focused on helping reduce people’s day to day costs. As mayor, I froze TTC fares three years in a row and expanded school food to every school, feeding 330,000 students. If re-elected, I'm committing to a fourth fare freeze and a 10-ride weekly cap, so after 10 paid trips the rest of your week is free. That's about $1,000 a year back in a regular commuter's pocket. I'm also committing to a full school lunch for every child, which could save families up to $1,800 per child each year. I’m also bringing forward a plan for 15,000 youth jobs, and guaranteeing local jobs when we build the Scarborough East LRT. Building affordable homes is a priority too, by cutting city charges on homes we’re reducing the cost of a new home for the buyer, and we’re building 15,000 units of affordable rental. These actions will drive housing prices down, which is the largest affordability challenge we face as a city.
3. Many young people, particularly Black and racialized youth, face barriers to finding meaningful employment and gaining work experience. What would you do to create more jobs and opportunities for youth across Toronto?
As mayor, I've made the City one of Toronto's largest youth employers, with over 16,000 jobs. I launched the Toronto Youth Employment Strategy with United Way, which created 2,600 jobs in its first six months. Programs like CityServeTO give young people real work experience in their own neighbourhoods. If re-elected, I'm committing to 15,000 new youth jobs and a guarantee that 20% of construction jobs on the Scarborough East LRT go to local residents, with 15% of apprenticeships for local youth aged 18 to 35. That's double what was promised on past LRTs, because the young people who live there should be the ones getting those jobs.
4. What would you do to address the housing and homelessness crisis, including the needs of people struggling to find or maintain affordable housing?
For ten years, the City walked away from building housing. As mayor, I have worked to correct this mistake. I put the City's own land and resources behind housing at a scale we haven't seen in decades. Right now, we have 15,000 affordable rental units under construction, with 10,000 more breaking ground next year.
To help protect renters, I brought in the Renoviction Bylaw to stop illegal evictions based on renovations. I doubled the Rent Bank to help renters in a tough month, doubled the number RentSafe inspectors to help keep apartments safe. Now, I am proposing a dedicated team to go after the worst landlords in the City.
When it comes to homelessness ,we moved 5,000 people experiencing homelessness into permanent housing last year, and encampments are down 70%. If re-elected, I'm committing to build more supportive housing to help bring people off the street, help them with addictions issues, and keep people housed.
5. Over the years, we have continuously seen stories of violence and crime that have resulted in tragedies deeply impacting our communities. What will you do to address gun violence and youth crime, especially the deaths of Black teens?
I have held the hands of mothers who lost their sons to gun violence, and I promised them I would do everything I can to prevent it. As mayor, I created the city's first Summer Safety Plan, expanded youth violence prevention programs, opened every library on Sundays with teen zones, and made 911 response 90% faster. In 2025, youth violence was down 40%. If re-elected, I'm committing $28 million over four years to youth violence prevention, mentorship and jobs. That includes reaching kids as young as six with mentorship, recreation and arts programs, because every young person deserves somewhere safe to belong and a future worth reaching for.
6. Toronto has a large and diverse arts and culture community. We cover many events happening in the city, and we've talked to many BIPOC artists and grassroots organizations who say they struggle to get access to funding and opportunities. What would you do to make arts and culture funding more accessible and equitable, particularly for emerging and BIPOC artists?
Toronto's artists, especially emerging and BIPOC artists, are part of what makes this city great, and they deserve a fair shot at funding and space. As mayor, I opened all 100 library branches seven days a week, giving young creators free places to gather, learn and make work. If re-elected, I'm committing to expand arts, mentorship and recreation programs for young people starting at age six. I'm also committing to add 1,000 more free family passes to museums and attractions each month, so more communities can see themselves in our city's culture.
7. Black and racialized communities often depend on transit to get around the city. What is your plan to make public transit more reliable and safe for people?
As mayor, I froze TTC fares three years in a row, restored service, and delivered the Scarborough Busway months ahead of schedule, saving riders up to an hour a week. I've also added more than 420 frontline workers to keep transit safe, including crisis workers, social services teams and police. If re-elected, I'm committing to freeze fares for a fourth year and cap fares at 10 rides a week. A personal support worker riding several times a day to see clients will ride free after her tenth trip. I've made the Scarborough East Rapid Transit Line the City's top transit priority, with $377 million set aside for a downpayment, and I'll secure the federal and provincial funding to build it in the next term.
8. What sets you apart from the other mayoral candidates, and what do you want voters, especially those who feel their voices do not matter during municipal elections, to know about you?
I came to Toronto from Hong Kong at 13 and grew up in St. James Town. On my mother’s single income as a maid, it was hard, but we survived. I grew up knowing the value of every dollar and what it means to get by. As a city councillor, an MP and now as mayor, I've spent my career fighting for the people who need it most: better housing, better transit and lower cost of living. I have always been on the side of people. To anyone who feels their vote doesn't matter, your voice decides whether we keep moving forward or go backwards, so make sure you use it.
