October 26, 2023 - In late June, Olivia Chow, 66, was elected the 66th mayor of Toronto, edging out runner-up Ana Bailão after a whirlwind two-month campaign that saw more than 100 candidates registered.

An avid cyclist, Chow first became a Toronto city councillor in November 1991 after serving as a school board trustee, when she was elected to what was then called Metro Council. She held that position until 2005, and then became the NDP’s MP for Trinity- Spadina from 2006 to 2014.

Chow, partner of the late NDP leader Jack Layton, lost her 2014 mayoral bid, coming in third. She found success this time garnering more than 260,000 votes. Chow breaks several barriers in Toronto politics, becoming both the first female mayor since the city amalgamated in 1998, and the first mayor of a visible minority. June Rowlands was the first woman to serve as Toronto’s mayor from 1991 to 1994.

Hundreds of supporters joined Chow as she biked to City Hall, where she was officially sworn in. Back in 2014, during her campaign, she vowed to create a 200km network of bike lanes in the city.

She is the first mayor who rides a bike to work since John Sewell, the city’s mayor from 1978 to 1980. Chow and her former husband, Jack Layton, both long-time avid cyclists, championed many cycling initiatives in the city, and she continues to support and advocate for safe cycling.