Dominique Blain Ryersonian Staff

Kyle Rae has won Ward 27 yet again.

Kyle Rae has done it, yet again.

The city councillor for Toronto Centre-Rosedale won his ward on Monday night with more than 56 per cent of the vote, an impressive margin of victory over his nearest challenger, Carol Golench, who mustered up less than nine per cent.

Seven individuals rolled their dice and gambled on what was ultimately a bet made with unforgiving odds. After all the polling stations had counted every ballot, almost 9,000 people believed in Rae’s campaign promises or trusted him enough to carry on the job he’s been doing thus far.

Rae has held his seat on council since he was first elected in 1991. He’s faced re-election five times and has won each of them handily. In 2000, Rae went unopposed in the ward’s race, and in 2003 only one person mustered the courage to square off against him.

Rae campaigned on a platform aimed at increasing TTC funding at the provincial and federal level, increasing transit routes and getting student discounts on TTC passes.

He also called for more municipal funding, adding bike lanes on Bloor Street, and improving the dearth of affordable housing units in his ward. Rae said that his re-election won’t change the relationship he currently has with Ryerson.

He said he’s always been a longstanding supporter of Ryerson students and the administration. Pushing Ryerson’s Master Plan forward, specifically getting transit passes for university students and closing Gould Street, are some of the main priorities that Rae said he’ll work on.

“Now that the ridership and revenues are up, maybe now is the time to look into getting a UPass,” said Rae.

Regarding Gould Street, he said, “I’m committed to seeing Gould close, but we have to look at a series of options. Keep it closed for 24 hours a day or between 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. so deliveries to Ryerson and the Metropolis can still occur.”

Ryerson president Sheldon Levy applauded Rae’s win and his dedication to helping close Gould Street as part of the school’s Master Plan. “I think Kyle has been supportive and he knows what we’re trying to achieve with the exercise we’re undertaking with the Master Plan and has indicated often and publicly a general support for what we’re trying to do,”said Levy.

Levy also welcomed Rae’s interest in lobbying City Hall to make public transit more accessible and affordable for the Ryerson student population.

“I think improved transit for the city is priority for everyone, I think the grid lock is almost unbearable. The more we can bring faculty and staff to use transit, the better for the university and the city,” said Levy.

“I’d love to see a real emphasis on giving post-secondary students as much of a break as possible and encouraging as much use of public transit.” RSU president Muhammad Ali Jabbar said he also welcomes Rae back to the ward and looks forward to his continued support for Ryerson’s aims, such as closing Gould Street.

“When it comes to the Master Plan, I think that’s where he’ll be really be able to help us out when we need to move forward on the initiative, like closing Gould Street,” said Jabbar.

Ryerson entered the electoral stage not only through the Ward 27 race. Adam Sit, a fourth-year retail management student at Ryerson, ran for mayor and took only 658 votes. The eventual winner, David Miller, received more than 317,000 votes.

Look back at all the 2006 candidates in Ryerson's Ward 27.