Case studies of municipal elections hold little appeal for students of local government. Recent scholarship for the most part has focused on gender or the election of councillors, but studies of mayoral contests are virtually non–existent. This is somewhat surprising, considering the constituent size of several large Canadian municipalities where local government leaders are directly elected. If indeed local government is the level closest to the people, a study of municipal electoral behaviour in large cities can provide insights about the relationship between local politicians and the electorate.