1956 Toronto municipal election

Municipal elections were held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on December 3, 1956. Incumbent mayor Nathan Phillips was easily reelected. Jean Newman became the first woman elected to the Board of Control, and topped the poll to become budget chief.

Toronto mayor

Nathan Phillips, elected two years earlier, faced only limited opposition from Trotskyist Ross Dowson and was easily reelected.

Results: Nathan Phillips - 80,352; Ross Dowson - 9,834

Board of Control

All four sitting Board of Control members chose to run for reelection. Controller and former mayor Leslie Saunders was pushed off the board by Jean Newman's victory. Newman is the first woman to be elected to the Board of Control or to win a city-wide election in Toronto.

Results: Jean Newman - 54,785; Ford Brand (incumbent) - 54,178; William Allen (incumbent) - 54,038; Joseph Cornish (incumbent) - 49,385; Leslie Saunders (incumbent) - 47,048; Harry Bradley - 16,450; Charles Sims - 6961; George Rolland - 5,632

City council

Ward 1 (Riverdale): Ken Waters (incumbent) - 6,318; Fred Beavis - 3,636; Jean Brown - 3,412; George Phillips (incumbent) - 2,578; Dominic Di Stasi - 1,657; Basil Ingleby - 494

Ward 2 (Regent Park and Rosedale): William Dennison (incumbent) - 4,962; May Birchard - 2,614; Sterling Campbell - 2,567; Edgar Roxborough (incumbent) - 2,380; Andrew Kavanaugh - 569; Philip Rowley - 528

Ward 3 (West Downtown and Summerhill): Ross Parry (incumbent) - 4,149; John MacVicar - 1,980; Richard James - 2,537

Ward 4 (The Annex, Kensington Market and Garment District): Herbert Orliffe (incumbent) - 4,437; Francis Chambers (incumbent) - 3,449; David Rotenberg - 2,692; Dorothy Cureatz - 628

Ward 5 (Trinity-Bellwoods and Little Italy): Philip Givens (incumbent) - 6,226; Harold Menzies (incumbent) - 5,177; Ben Nobleman - 1,500; Paul Pauk - 1,092

Ward 6 (Davenport and Parkdale): May Robinson (incumbent) - 8,691; Frank Clifton (incumbent) - 7,171; William Stevens - 3,884; Wallace Martin - 2,066; John Shedden - 1,795; George Jackson - 1,498

Ward 7 (Bloor West Village): William Davidson (incumbent) - 5,122; John Kucherepa (incumbent) - 5,069; Thomas Wilson - 1,548; Stewart - 1,077; William Repka - 579

Ward 8 (The Beaches): Donald Summerville (incumbent) - 12,567; Albert G. Cranham (incumbent) - 9,577; Chris Stavro - 2,488; John Square - 1,146

Ward 9 (North Toronto): Frank Nash (incumbent) - 12,084; Kenneth Ostrander - 10,515; Alex Thompson - 8,064

Results are taken from the December 4, 1956 Toronto Star and might not exactly match final tallies.

Changes

Ward 7 Alderman John Kucherepa resigned January 6, 1958 having been elected in the 1957 Federal Election; Thomas Wilson was appointed replacement on January 20.

Suburbs

East York

Reeve

Jack R. Allen
C. Howard Chandler

Jack R. Allen defeated business executive C. Howard Chandler.

Etobicoke

Reeve

H.O. Waffle
Jack Bennett

Deputy Reeve Waffle defeated Bennett, a former Toronto alderman to replace retiring reeve Bev Lewis.

Forest Hill

Reeve

Laurie T. Simonsky (acclaimed)

Leaside

Mayor

(x)Charles Hiscott

Long Branch

Reeve

(x)Marie Curtis

Mimico

Mayor

(x)William Arthur (Gus) Edwards

New Toronto

Mayor
(x)Donald Russell

North York

Reeve

Vernon Singer - 24,045
Maurice T. Hook - 5,302

Councillor Singer defeated former deputy reeve Hook to replace retiring reeve, Fred McMahon.

Scarborough

Reeve

Albert Campbell - 13,470
(x)Gus Harris - 11,569

Swansea

(x)Dorothy Hague (acclaimed)

Weston

Mayor

(x)Harry Clark

York

Reeve

Chris Tonks
Walter Saunders
Charles McMaster

References

Election Coverage. Toronto Star. December 4, 1956