Toronto Mayor Says He Won't Resign

Updated Nov. 6, 2013 5:49 a.m. ET

The mayor of Toronto Rob Ford admits to smoking crack cocaine “probably a year ago” when he was in a “drunken stupor.” (Photo/Video: AP)

TORONTO—Mayor Rob Ford said on Tuesday he has smoked crack cocaine, confirming reports that have dogged the leader of Canada’s largest city for months but not likely ending the headline-grabbing saga as the embattled Toronto politician promised to fight on.
In a day of high drama, Mr. Ford told reporters that he smoked the drug “about” a year ago when “in one of my drunken stupors.”

Speaking outside his office at City Hall, the mayor said, “Yes, I have smoked crack cocaine,” after having repeatedly denied reports of drug use since they first emerged in May.
Mr. Ford also said he would remain in office, raising questions in Toronto about how the controversy will affect the running of North America’s fourth-largest city by population and whether the global attention its mayor has garnered will hurt attempts to position the city as a world leader in culture and finance.
“I love my job, I love this city,” Mr. Ford said, fighting back tears.

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford said on Tuesday that he would stay in office. Zuma Press

The admission came several days after Toronto’s police chief said investigators had recovered a video file that depicted activity “consistent” with media reports about images showing alleged drug use by Mr. Ford. On Tuesday, Mr. Ford repeated his demand for police to reveal the video, images he said he hasn’t seen. “I want to see what state I was in,” a tired-looking and emotional Mr. Ford said.
The admission, which a City Hall official said surprised even the mayor’s own staff, is unlikely to bring a rapid conclusion to a controversy that has dominated city politics for much of this year. The mayor can be removed from office only if incarcerated or through a loss at the polls, legal experts said. Police have said there is nothing in the recovered images that could lead to an arrest.
A Toronto Police spokeswoman said police will be passing on Mr. Ford’s admission to investigators, but said they couldn’t release the recovered video, a decision only the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General can make. A spokesman for the Attorney General said the office won’t release the video unless it is presented as an exhibit in a court case.
Some Toronto city councilors on Tuesday called for Mr. Ford to step aside, joining a growing chorus from business associations and media outlets, including those once loyal to the mayor.
“The mayor has given less than full and fair disclosure in this entire affair,” Councilor Denzil Minnan-Wong, a political ally of Mr. Ford, said in an interview. “I believe that it’s in his best interest to take time out.”
Jaye Robinson, a left-leaning councilor who has clashed with the mayor, told reporters that Mr. Ford’s troubles will be a distraction for the council as it deals with the next round of budget talks and an attempt to expand the city’s transit system.
Some said the drama could hit Toronto’s reputation and a tourism industry that brought in 4.7 billion Canadian dollars (US$4.5 billion) from visitors in 2011.
“We want to create a persona for the city of lake front, Niagara Falls, the entertainment district, and now people might be thinking crack, and a city that elected that,” said Tony Chapman, chief executive of Toronto-based marketing company Capital C.
Despite the scandal, Mr. Ford has retained a core group of supporters who say he has lowered taxes and cuts costs. They have argued that he is the victim of a liberal media and, more recently, a political vendetta by the police chief, Bill Blair. That is a narrative Mr. Ford and his brother, fellow city councilor Doug Ford, have pushed but which will be harder to argue given Mr. Ford’s admission. Mr. Blair has said the police are doing their jobs and that he wouldn’t respond to personal attacks.
“Fiscally he has done the best job of any mayor I can remember,” said Toronto resident Andrea Jay, who said she will vote for him in the next election despite Tuesday’s revelations.
Even as Mr. Ford was making his admission on Tuesday, his brother was comparing the invasive scrutiny he has received to that of the late Princess Diana during a speech at a local journalism school, students said over the messaging service Twitter.
Doug Ford couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
A small group of protesters gathered outside City Hall calling for Mr. Ford to step down and holding a cardboard banner saying: “CRACK FORD RESIGN.” Inside the building, a throng of journalists three or four rows deep waited outside the mayor’s office.
Mr. Ford still faces a number of questions, including a series of police disclosures that also tied Mr. Ford to Alexander Lisi, an associate of the mayor’s who was arrested on Thursday for what the police called “extortive efforts” to retrieve a recording. Police documents released the same day, which were used to obtain a warrant for Mr. Lisi’s arrest, show a close relationship between Messrs. Ford and Lisi, who is also facing charges on drug trafficking and other offenses.
According to the heavily redacted documents, the two met in a parking lot and once in “the woods” and Mr. Lisi was observed placing an envelope and, on a several occasions, bags in Mr. Ford’s car. The police chief also spoke of a “second” video featuring Mr. Ford, without saying what was on it. Mr. Ford has so far declined to comment on these accusations, saying only that Mr. Lisi is a “good guy.” Mr. Lisi and his lawyer couldn’t immediately be reached.

Mr. Ford’s tumultuous tenure began in October 2010, after he was elected by a wide margin, winning support from Toronto’s suburbs with pledges to cut wasteful spending and cut down on government perks that plagued prior city administrations.
But his term proved controversial from the start as he faced allegations including conflicts-of-interest lapses and reading while at the wheel of his car.
Toronto resident Sean Wilson, who voted for Mr. Ford in 2010, said he wouldn’t do that again.
“The city is practically a laughing stock” because of his behavior, Mr. Wilson said in downtown Toronto. “I have friends that live in New Zealand who have heard of our mayor. You know, the crackhead mayor.”
Write to Alistair MacDonald at alistair.macdonald@wsj.com and Ben Dummett at ben.dummett@wsj.com

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