Paul Ainslie

Paul Ainslie (/ˈeɪnzli/ ^ⓘ AYNZ-lee; born February 4, 1967) is a city councillor in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2006, he was appointed as an interim councillor in ward 41,^[1] and was then elected as the councillor for Ward 43 in Scarborough East. On October 22, 2018 he was elected as Councillor for Ward 24 Scarborough-Guildwood.

Paul Ainslie
Ainslie in 2010
Toronto City Councillor for (Ward 24) Scarborough-Guildwood
Incumbent
Assumed office December 1, 2018
Preceded by	Ward established
Toronto City Councillor for (Ward 43) Scarborough East
In office December 1, 2006 – December 1, 2018
Preceded by	David Soknacki
Succeeded by	Ward abolished
Chair of the Scarborough Community Council
In office December 1, 2010 – December 31, 2012
Preceded by	Michael Del Grande
Succeeded by	Michelle Berardinetti
Toronto City Councillor for (Ward 41) Scarborough-Rouge River (interim)
In office February 1, 2006 – December 1, 2006
Preceded by	Bas Balkissoon
Succeeded by	Chin Lee
Personal details
Born	(1967-02-04) February 4, 1967 (age 58) Scarborough, Ontario, Canada
Political party	Independent
Spouse	Janet Ainslie
Children	3
Occupation	Municipal Councillor
Website	www.paulainslie.com

On February 1, 2006, City Council appointed Ainslie to fill the vacancy in Ward 41 that was created when Bas Balkissoon was elected in a provincial by-election in the riding of Scarborough—Rouge River.^[2]

A condition of the appointment was that he would not run as a candidate in the 2006 election. However, when councillor David Soknacki announced his intention not to run in Ward 43, Ainslie put his name forward as a candidate to replace him. Ainslie used to be an executive assistant to Soknacki. Soknacki supported Ainslie's candidacy.^{[citation needed]}

During the election campaign in 2006, a video surfaced which showed Ainslie promising to Toronto City Council not to run. "I will not run in Ward 41, or any other ward in the city."^[3] His campaign literature urged voters to "return" him to city hall. He said that his campaign team suggested using the word "re-elect". Ainslie said, "I didn't think it was proper."^[4] Despite the controversy, he was elected in Ward 43.^[5]

In April 2007, he determined that it costs $20,000 annually to provide councillors and staff at City Hall offices with free coffee every day. He moved a motion in committee to remove the expense, but it failed to pass.^[6][7]

During the Rob Ford drug allegation scandal, Ainslie was removed as chair from the city's government management committee and appointed as chair of the parks and environment committee.^[8] On October 11, 2013, he resigned from the mayor's executive committee and his role as chair of the parks and environment committee over differences with Ford's longterm strategic direction for the city.^[9]

On May 3, 2013, Ainslie was stopped by a RIDE check on Kingston Road and was given a three-day licence suspension.^[10][11][12]

Election results

2018 Toronto election, Ward 24[13]
Candidate	Votes	%
Paul Ainslie	15,131	66.82%
Michelle Spencer	1,933	8.54%
Priyanth Nallaratnam	1,896	8.38%
Reddy Muttukuru	1,323	5.85%
Sajid Saleh	841	3.71%
Morlan Washington	592	2.62%
Keiosha Ross	405	1.79%
Emery Warner	393	1.74%
Itohan Evbagharu	132	0.58%
Total	22,646	100%

2014 Toronto election, Ward 43[14]
Candidate	Votes	%
Paul Ainslie	12,358	74.3%
Harris Mark	1,750	10.5%
Jason Colterman	1,437	8.6%
Bartley Alonzo	799	4.8%
Kodanipork Andi	283	1.7%
Total	16,627	100%

2010 Toronto election, Ward 43[15]
Candidate	Votes	%
Paul Ainslie	9,334	60.6%
John Laforet	4,440	28.8%
Bhaskar Sharma	758	4.9%
Benjamin Mbaegbu	489	3.18%
Samuel Getachew	392	2.5%
Total	15,413	100%

2006 Toronto election, Ward 43[16]
Candidate	Votes	%
Paul Ainslie	4,677	38.7%
Jim Robb	3,388	28.1%
Abdul Patel	1,738	14.4%
John Laforet	933	7.7%
Mujeeb Khan	495	4.1%
Glenn Kitchen	495	4.1%
Amarjeet Chhabra	351	2.9%
Total	12,077	100%