Scarborough North council race pits incumbent against 2 former MPs

Several high-profile candidates are running to lead Toronto’s 23rd ward as major transit changes on the horizon for the area has made the region a competitive hotspot for the upcoming municipal elections.

The construction of a new Scarborough Line subway stop and promises of a new LRT from both mayoral frontrunners mean major projects are coming to Scarborough North and many are looking to lead the ward as infrastructure is built up.

Eight candidates are on the ballot for Scarborough North. While that includes an incumbent who held the high-profile position of TTC board chair, Jamaal Myers is facing fierce competition in his battle to retain his seat on council.

Former Liberal Party MPs Han Dong and Shaun Chen are hoping to win the council seat. Both think they have what it takes to make sure the ward’s interests are better served.

Myers won in 2022 under unique circumstances after the incumbent councillor, Cynthia Lai, in the race died on the eve of election day.

The city never revealed how many votes Lai received, but Myers acknowledges he’s hearing from the former councillor’s supporters as he knocks on doors. One of whom was willing to give him a shot in the upcoming election, he said.

Like other suburban councillors, Myers said residents in the ward feel the city isn’t providing enough value for their tax dollars.

If re-elected, he is promising to make sure the borough gets its fair share of resources and investments from a city hall he feels is too focused on downtown issues.

“I will be making sure that whoever is the mayor, that they are making sure that Scarborough is part of the conversation,” he said. “We’re also seeing the type of care and attention that other wards take for granted.”

But while Myers is pushing for his ward to be respected, both Chen and Dong said he was part of the problem.

During a contentious vote on whether to allow six-plexes to be built city-wide to meet the terms of federal funding agreements, Myers was the only suburban councillor to opt-into the zoning change.

When the item was debated in 2025, Myers noted that there were plenty of community consultations that took part in his ward before the item was voted on. “We did the work of answering a lot of questions, making sure there was no misinformation, having as many meetings as people wanted,” Myers said during the council meeting.

“We eventually got people there, so maybe if they weren’t 100 per cent on board, at least they understood why we were doing this, that we need to build more affordable housing,” he said that July.

He also said during that debate that part of the reason for needing the change, was that the ward was experiencing a population decline. Gentle densification like multiplexes, he argued, could help address that issue.

However, Dong and Chen told Global News that decision was a mistake.

“We’re not a testing pit, I think that needs to be consulted neighbourhood-to-neighbourhood,” Dong said.

Despite telling Global News he doesn’t live in the ward, but plans to move there, Dong said he’s heard a lot of concerns over parking and changing the character of bungalow-heavy neighbourhoods.

Among the changes he’s pitching at the door are more regular community consultation meetings so residents feel included.

He also took aim at his former caucus mate, Chen, for failing to speak out about the six-plex changes while representing the ward federally.

“The MP for 11 years hasn’t gotten up, hasn’t spoken against, hasn’t expressed any opinion while he was in the position,” Dong said. “People are very frustrated.”

For his part, Chen, who resigned his federal post over lingering health issues from a car crash before jumping into the local race, said he shares concerns over the zoning changes.

“That is a local council decision and particularly a decision the local councillor has a huge say on,” Chen said, suggesting it wasn’t his place as a federal representative to muscle in on the decision.

But he said the fact that Scarborough North was the only riding outside of the Old City of Toronto to opt in remains an issue in the ward.

“It means we got to do our homework and as the local councillor, I will make sure that I do my homework,” he said, vowing to speak to residents before making critical decisions that represent local concerns and character.

Sajawal Javed, Kevin Li, John-Mark Oleh, Ronald Phen and Piravena Sathiyanantham are also registered to run in Scarborough North.

Election day is Oct. 26.