Supreme Court to rule on whether Ontario had power to cut number of Toronto councillors mid-election

The Supreme Court of Canada has granted leave to appeal the decision of the Court of Appeal for Ontario in the case of City of Toronto v. Attorney General of Ontario.

We previously wrote in our article Nothing Wrong With Cutting Number Of Toronto City Councillors During Election Campaign: Court Of Appeal:

In a 3-2 decision, the Court of Appeal for Ontario in Toronto (City) v. Ontario (Attorney General) held that the Province of Ontario’s decision to reduce the number of Toronto City Councillors from 47 to 25 in the middle of a municipal election did not violate any constitutional rights of candidates or citizens. In a nod to the prevailing administrative law principle that courts should rarely interfere in political decisions, the Court of Appeal set aside a lower court decision that found the change imposed by the Province had violated the right of free expression guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms of candidates and voters alike.

As is usual, the Supreme Court did not provide reasons as to why it granted leave to appeal. The 3-2 split decision of the Court of Appeal for Ontario was likely a factor. The Supreme Court will finally resolve the issue of what power the Province of Ontario had to make changes to Toronto’s electoral map during the last municipal election.

The date for the Supreme Court hearing has not been set. Case updates can be found here.