Rob Ford, the pugnacious, populist former mayor of Toronto whose career crashed in a drug-driven, obscenity-laced debacle, died Tuesday after fighting cancer, his family says.
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Former Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, who became controversially known for his drug and alcohol abuse while in office, has died after battling cancer for years, his office confirmed Tuesday.
The scandal vaulted Ford onto the stage of the outrageous.
Ford spoke his mind and ran for office “because of the deeply felt convictions that he had”, Tory said.
Ford became Toronto’s mayor in 2010 in a campaign in which he attacked the elites of Canada’s largest city.
Flags at City Hall, Metro Hall and Toronto civic centres have been lowered to half-mast, and will remain that way until Ford’s funeral.
Nevertheless, he was later elected by a landslide to a city council seat, a job he held until his death.
Ford’s was open about his treatment in the hope it would bring more attention to his condition.
Then-Toronto Mayor Rob Ford tells supporters at the “Ford Fest’ barbecue in Toronto on September 27, 2014, that he will triumph over a rare form of a cancer”.
Family: Ford is survived by his wife Renata (right) and his two children Doug (second left) and Stephanie (second right). “So you can remember it for what you want, but they’re definitely going to remember it”.
A battery of tests showed Ford had malignant liposarcoma, a rare and aggressive type of cancer which arises in soft tissues including fat, blood vessels, nerves and muscles.
In May 2015, doctors removed a tumor from Rob Ford’s abdomen and said they saw no signs of other tumors.
Toronto Mayor John Tory presents a declaration of office to newly elected councillor and outgoing mayor Rob Ford during an inauguration ceremony in Toronto on Tuesday, December 2, 2014.
The admission set off a series of incredible events: The emergence of a video that showed him inebriated and threatening to kill someone. “I loved Rob so much I took care of him and protected him from the day he was born”, the statement said.
Atchison told reporters he shared with Ford that he played for the Johnstown Jets, one of the teams featured in the 1977 hockey comedy movie Slap Shot, starring Paul Newman.
Ford took a leave of absence and entered rehab instead until June 2014.
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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau expressed his condolences to Ford’s family, as did former prime minister Stephen Harper, whose close ties to the ex-mayor were highlighted in last fall’s federal election.
