1947 Toronto municipal election

Municipal elections were held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on January 1, 1947. With little serious opposition Robert Hood Saunders was re-elected as mayor.

The election was a major defeat for the communist Labor-Progressive Party faction on city council, with Controller Stewart Smith and Alderman Dewar Ferguson being defeated. This left the party with only two seats on city council, Norman Freed and Charles Sims. This was somewhat mitigated by two communists winning seats on the Toronto Board of Education.

The vote also featured three referendums. Two were approved that would have a lasting effect on the city of Toronto. One called for the creation of the Regent Park housing project in the east end of the city. The second approved the city buying up the land northwest of the intersection of Bay and Queen streets for a city square and municipal buildings. This would later be the site of Nathan Phillips Square and Toronto City Hall. Rejected for a third time was a proposal to move to three year municipal terms.

Toronto mayor
Mayor Robert Hood Saunders faced only fringe candidates: Frank O'Hearn, who would go on to found the New Capitalist Party, and Trotskyist Murray Dowson.


 * Results
 * Robert Hood Saunders - 92,762
 * Frank O'Hearn - 9,477
 * Murray Dowson - 3,180

Board of Control
The only major change on the Board of Control was the defeat of Stewart Smith, the leader of the Communist faction at city hall. He was ousted by North Toronto alderman John Innes.


 * Results
 * Hiram E. McCallum (incumbent) - 58,524
 * John Innes - 53,137
 * David Balfour (incumbent) - 51,578
 * Kenneth Bert McKellar (incumbent) - 49,680
 * Stewart Smith (incumbent)- 42,106
 * M.A. Sanderson - 26,136
 * Harry Bradley - 10,749
 * Harry Clairmont - 4,858

City council



 * Ward 1 (Riverdale)
 * Charles Walton (incumbent) - 4,788
 * Leslie Saunders - 4,596
 * William Murdoch (incumbent) - 3,969
 * W. Simpson - 2,067
 * Harry Marley - 1,606


 * Ward 2 (Cabbagetown and Rosedale)
 * Louis Shannon (incumbent) - 4,102
 * Everett Weaver - 3,215
 * May Birchard (incumbent) - 3,079
 * George A. Wilson - 3,015
 * William Dennison - 2,248


 * Ward 3 (West Downtown and Summerhill)
 * Harold Fishleigh (incumbent) - 3,397
 * Allan Lamport (incumbent) - 2,884
 * John McVicar - 1,245
 * Harry Gilbert - 682
 * Karl Prager - 271


 * Ward 4 (The Annex, Kensington Market and Garment District)
 * Norman Freed (incumbent) - 4,910
 * Nathan Phillips (incumbent) - 4,690
 * Francis Chambers - 3,703
 * C.G. Hamilton - 1,121


 * Ward 5 (Trinity-Bellwoods
 * Charles Sims (incumbent) - 7,283
 * Arthur Frost (incumbent) - 6,848
 * Margaret Luckock - 4,936
 * Patrick McKeown - 1,335


 * Ward 6 (Davenport and Parkdale)
 * George Granell - 8,526
 * William Clifton - 6,803
 * Dewar Ferguson (incumbent) - 5,775
 * D.J. Bennett - 5,091
 * Eamon Park - 1,825


 * Ward 7 (West Toronto Junction)
 * William Butt (incumbent) - 5,773
 * E.C. Roelofson (incumbent) - 3,557
 * J.A. Service - 2,240


 * Ward 8 (The Beaches)
 * W.H. Collings (incumbent) - 8,120
 * Roy Mealing - 5,678
 * William Howell (incumbent) - 5,319
 * Murray Cotterill - 4,756
 * James Davis - 1,522


 * Ward 9 (North Toronto)
 * Melville Wilson (incumbent) - 8,307
 * Leonard Reilly - 6,173
 * W.H. Harris - 5,999
 * Alex Thompson - 4,109
 * H.V. Locke - 3,542
 * R.M. McLean - 1,480

Results taken from the January 2, 1947 Globe and Mail and might not exactly match final tallies.