Will Doug Ford actually run for MPP? And what happens if he does?

With a provincial election expected within the next few months, it may finally be time for councillor Doug Ford, the mayor’s brother, to make good on his longstanding pledge to run for a seat at Queen’s Park, just like dad. Except, there are problems. For one thing, the Progressive Conservative party’s foot soldiers are nervous at the prospect of having a notorious loudmouth in their caucus; for another, Doug trying to become an MPP would leave Rob Ford with, at best, a part-time campaign manager during the 2014 mayoral election. Doug is supposed to do the job, but it’s not clear how he’d balance it with his own campaign.

The latter could be a very serious problem for the mayor. His numerous scandals have left him with few other trusted advisors. Ford has churned through five chiefs of staff and three press secretaries in three years. His office is currently being run by Dan Jacobs, a guy who used to be his radio producer at Newstalk 1010.

The four ex-chiefs of staff—Nick Kouvalis, Amir Remtulla, Earl Provost, and Mark Towhey—were all key architects of Ford’s early success as mayor. All of them now have other jobs, and Towhey spends his days mocking his former boss with witty subtweets.

In 2010, the mayor won with the help of a brain trust. This time around, his only true believer is Doug—a man whose key political accomplishment is being the smarter of two guys named Ford. If even Doug can’t be relied upon to stick around, Rob could have to campaign on his own wits.