Municipal Elections 101

These resources were developed largely during the Toronto mayoral by-election of 2023. However, many of them are applicable for other elections too!

A beginner's guide to looking up political financial data
Financial transparency is important to democracy. Money plays a big role in our current electoral system. In Toronto, records are public and can be found on the city's open data portal. This guide is an introduction to using that portal using example
Finding the finances is tricky on the city website with so many links, and it also opens up different pages without a clear url line, if you get lost trace back to the middle navigation menu: "City of Toronto City Government Elections Financial Discl
Scenario 1: You want to compare the funding and spending of mayoral candidates. (Note: use the same process for councillors and trustees) Step 1: Choose the election year Step 2: Click Search Financial Information Step 3: Select "Registered for Mayo
Step 4: Select up to five candidates to compare Step 5: Explore the tabs on screen Step 6: You can also "export all data" at the bottom right
Scenario 2: You want to see everyone who donated to a specific campaign. Step 1: Select Election year Step 2: Select "Search Contributions" Step 3: Enter candidate name, select registration type
Step 4: Explore results on web Tip: This is interactive and you can sort results alphabetically, date, size of donation etc Step 5: Export results at the bottom right
Scenario 3: You want to see if someone specific donated and to whom, this could be a public figure, your boss, your landlord etc Step 1: Select Election year Step 2: Select "Search Contributions" Step 3: Enter contributor's last name
There are many reasons you may want to look this information up; to see who developers are financing, to see if public figures back up their endorsements with donations, to see if people associated with hate filled organizations donate to certain can
This is just an introduction to looking up campaign finances. There is a lot more you can do, but these building blocks cover the basics and you'll learn more as you go.

Here is a fact sheet around financing political campaigns.

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Candidate Report Card

This card is intended as a starting point to organize your thoughts about candidates. It is non-partisan and personal to the individual using it.

Add how you would rank a candidate's performance in each category, and then use the 'weight' column to determine which categories are most important to you. Add all of your totals together and you've done your due diligence in candidate consideration.

This is one of many ways to select a candidate, and is not exhaustive. But if you're overwhelmed by choice this card is your friend!

Further Reading:

Other places to get your nerd on!

  • The City of Toronto 2023 Election landing page where you can find out who is running, third party advertisers, election sign rules, election jobs when they come up, and more. Visit: toronto.ca/city-government/elections/by-election/

  • The Local is unabashedly Toronto , reporting from corners of the city that are too often ignored or misunderstood, with bylines as diverse as the city itself. Visit: thelocal.to

  • City Hall Watcher is a Newsletter written by journalist Matt Elliott: “Toronto’s municipal government in nerdy detail. With charts.” Visit toronto.cityhallwatcher.com/

  • Your city, your paper. https://www.thegrindmag.ca/

  • Follow the work of kick-ass community advocates. https://cityto.win/