Cynthia Lai

Cynthia Lai (/laɪ/ ^ⓘ LY; Chinese: 封賴桂霞; pinyin: Fēnglài Guìxiá; October 19, 1954 – October 21, 2022) was a Canadian politician who represented Ward 23 Scarborough North on the Toronto City Council from 2018 to 2022.

Cynthia Lai
封賴桂霞
Toronto City Councillor for Ward 23 Scarborough North
In office December 1, 2018 – October 21, 2022
Preceded by	Ward created
Succeeded by	Jamaal Myers
Personal details
Born	(1954-10-19)October 19, 1954 Hong Kong
Died	October 21, 2022 (aged 68) Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Nationality	Chinese-Canadian
Spouse	C. K. Fung
Relatives	Tony Wong (cousin)
Residence(s)	Toronto, Ontario

Background

Lai immigrated from Hong Kong and moved to Canada in 1972.^[1] Her cousin is Tony Wong, is a former member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) and municipal councillor.

Prior to entering politics, Lai worked as a realtor and was president of the Toronto Real Estate Board, the first Chinese-Canadian woman to hold that position.^[2]

Political career

Lai was elected to the Toronto City Council in the 2018 municipal election to represent Scarborough North (Ward 23).^[2] She served on the council until her death in 2022.

Personal life and death

Lai's grave at York Cemetery

Lai was hospitalized on October 20 during the 2022 election campaign.^[3] She died on October 21, 2022, two days after her 68th birthday and just three days before the municipal election.^[4] She had been suffering from gallbladder cancer.^[5]

She was interred at York Cemetery in Toronto. Flags at Toronto City Hall, Metro Hall and Toronto civic centres were flown at half-mast, and the Toronto Sign was dimmed in her honour.^[5]

Electoral history

2018

Ward 23 Scarborough North

Candidate	Votes	Percentage	Registration Date	Notes
Cynthia Lai	5,589	27.02%	May 28, 2018	Endorsed by Toronto Sun.[6]
Maggie Chi	4,137	20.00%	June 19, 2018	Worked as a constituency assistant to former Councillor Chin Lee, Ward 41, for 5 years.[7] Endorsement and support from Chin Lee (former City Councillor), Glen De Baeremaeker (Deputy Mayor for Scarborough), Shaun Chen (Member of Parliament, Scarborough North), Tom Chang (President of the Brimley Forest Community Association), Gary Loughlin (President of the C.D Farqhuarson Community Association).[8]
Felicia Samuel	3,702	17.89%	July 25, 2018	Former provincial NDP candidate. Endorsed by Toronto & York District Labour Council,[9] Progress Toronto,[10] Toronto Star,[11] and NOW magazine.[12]
Neethan Saba	2,808	13.57%	July 27, 2018
James Chow	1,487	7.19%	May 16, 2018
Ashwani Bhardwaj	1,259	6.09%	July 25, 2018
Sheraz Khan	453	2.19%	July 27, 2018
Dameon Halstead	391	1.89%	June 12, 2018
Mahboob Mian	335	1.62%	July 9, 2018
Sandeep Srivastava	273	1.32%	June 26, 2018
Anthony Internicola	254	1.23%	May 8, 2018

References

1. "About Councillor Lai". www.cynthialai.com. Archived from the original on January 3, 2020. Retrieved January 3, 2020.
2. "Subway backer Cynthia Lai claims open seat in Ward 23, Scarborough North". thestar.com. October 22, 2018. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
3. "Toronto councillor campaigning for re-election hospitalized". thestar.com. October 20, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
4. "Toronto councillor Cynthia Lai, running for re-election, dies". thestar.com. October 21, 2022. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
5. Talbot, Michael (October 21, 2022). "Toronto city councillor Cynthia Lai dies at age 68". CityNews. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
6. "Toronto Sun endorsements for city council". October 21, 2018. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
7. "Wide open Scarborough North race draws diverse array of candidates | The Star". thestar.com. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
8. "Maggie Chi for Ward 44 City Councillor". Archived from the original on October 11, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
9. "Endorsements 2018" (PDF). Toronto & York Region Labour Council. October 16, 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 16, 2018. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
10. "Council Ward 23 – Scarborough North". Progress Toronto. Archived from the original on October 4, 2018. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
11. "These are the council members Toronto needs". Toronto Star. October 16, 2018.
12. DiMatteo, Enzo (October 17, 2018). "Toronto Election 2018: A voter's guide to the good, bad, ugly and progressive choices for council". NOW Magazine. Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved May 2, 2019.