In his first speech as the mayor-elect of Toronto, Rob Ford addressed thousands of supporters in Etobicoke tonight.
Speaking at the Toronto Congress Centre, Ford echoed some of the sentiments offered by his political rival George Smitherman. He said Toronto voters had made their voices heard loud and clear.
“The statement is clear from the taxpayers – Enough is enough,” Ford said. “Tonight the people of Toronto are not divided. Tonight, we are united.”
Arriving at the centre to the strains of ‘Eye of the Tiger,’ Ford addressed those present with a review of his campaign points.
Ford reiterated that he would abolish the Fair Wage policy, add 100 police officers to the streets of Toronto and open up city contracts to competition.
He made a thinly veiled jab at outgoing Coun. Kyle Rae.
“We are going to cut politician’s expense accounts, so there won’t be any $12,000 retirement parties anymore,” he said.
Ford congratulated Smitherman for running a tough campaign, which drew boos from the audience; it was the only negative reaction from the thousands gathered.
He also addressed the 53 per cent of voters who marked their ballots for other candidates.
“To the people that didn’t vote for me: I will work harder to earn your trust and I will work toward change you can be proud of,” Ford said.
But the biggest cheers were reserved for Ford repeating his common rallying cry during the course of the campaign.
“The party with taxpayers’ money is over, ladies and gentlemen. We will respect taxpayers again,” he said.
“And yes …we will stop the ‘gravy train.’”