Toronto’s next mayor: First 2026 mayoral debate to focus on housing, affordability and poverty

As Toronto’s 2026 municipal election approaches, the Daily Bread Food Bank is set to host the campaign’s first mayoral debate next month.

The debate will take place at the Daily Bread Food Bank on Aug. 24 from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and will be moderated by the organization’s CEO, Neil Hetherington.

Hosted in partnership with community organizations including LAMP Community Health Centre and Scarborough United Neighbourhoods, the event will be the first major debate of the campaign ahead of the Oct. 26 municipal election.

Debate to focus on affordability and poverty

The discussion will centre on key issues facing Toronto residents, including poverty, affordability, housing, food insecurity and human rights.

There are currently 30 registered mayoral candidates, with the deadline to enter the race set for Aug. 21.

While no candidates have been confirmed for the debate, public opinion research firm Liaison Strategies says Daily Bread will use a five per cent polling threshold to determine who receives an invitation.

Liaison Strategies says it will begin candidate-name testing on July 24 to identify which candidates meet that threshold.

Chow, Bradford among candidates in the race

Among the registered candidates is incumbent Mayor Olivia Chow, who won the 2023 mayoral byelection following the resignation of John Tory.

Chow has previously said she plans to officially launch her re-election campaign in the fall, while her chief challenger, Beaches–East York Coun. Brad Bradford, has already begun actively campaigning.

This marks Bradford’s second bid for mayor. In the 2023 byelection, he finished eighth with just over 9,200 votes, while Chow won with more than 269,000 votes.

During the 2023 mayoral byelection, Daily Bread invited the six highest-polling candidates to participate in its debate.

Residents who wish to attend this year’s debate can register online free of charge.