Michael Ford (Canadian politician)

Michael Ford (born Michael Douglas Stirpe 1994) is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Toronto District School Board in the 2014 city council election defeating Incumbent John Hastings. He is the son of Cathy Ford and Ennio Stirpe, his uncles are former mayor Rob Ford and former councillor Doug Ford, his grandfather Doug Ford, Sr. was a MPP in the Mike Harris government.

Background

Born in Etobicoke in 1994, Ford's father, Ennio Stirpe, shot and killed his mother’s boyfriend in 1998. Stirpe had also been out of prison for a year when emergency responders found Angela Fantauzzi covered in blood inside his basement apartment in Vaughan in the fall of 2009. Ford graduated from Richview Collegiate Institute in 2010, he had been splitting his time between classes at Humber College and at Deco Labels and Tags, the Ford family business, where he was an account executive.

Ford is also a counsellor at Camp Kandalore in the Algonquin Highlands and is the holder of a pilot's license for light aircraft.

Political career

Ford initially ran for Toronto City Councillor for Ward 2 (Etobicoke North) to replace his uncle Doug Ford. On September 12, 2014, hours before the deadline, Rob Ford withdrew from the mayor's race and ran for what was his old city council seat in Ward 2. Michael Ford withdrew and switched his race over to Ward 1 (Etobicoke North) of the Toronto District School Board.

School trustee

On October 27, 2014, Ford was elected to the Toronto District School Board as Trustee for Ward 1 (Etobicoke North), defeating incumbent John Hastings, a man fifty-two years his senior by a nearly 2-1 margin, his victory was notable as during the campaign Ford did not grant requests for interviews and participated in no debates. Ford will take office in December 2014.