The no-politics mayoral candidate questionnaire: Ana Bailão
“An embarrassing fact about me is that I love telenovelas”
Long hours, combative colleagues and mean tweets for days: running Toronto is brutal work. The past two mayors left in ignominy. Why, then, is the slate of contenders longer than the line to eat at Alo? A record 102 candidates know that the city is on the verge of delivering huge, legacy-entrenching projects: thousands of affordable new homes, several new transit lines and the 2026 World Cup to cap it all off. If everything goes to plan, Toronto’s next mayor will get credit for lifting the city out of the pandemic and into a more hopeful future.
But, first, candidates have the daunting task of setting themselves apart from the crowd. For voters who can’t make up their minds based on hot-button issues like TTC safety, affordable housing and the future of Ontario Place, we present the ultimate tiebreaker: a questionnaire in which the front runners give answers on just about every topic other than politics—the theory being that, if their policies haven’t convinced voters, perhaps their personalities will.
Age: 47
Neighbourhood: Davenport
Last job: Head of affordable housing and public affairs at Dream, a real estate developer
My most impressive trait: Determination
My least impressive trait: The amount of caffeine I consume
The last time I experienced joy: Celebrating my mother’s birthday with family and friends
My biggest vice: Chocolate
My coffee order: One milk, no sugar
The fast food item I could survive on for the rest of my life: McNuggets
How much I usually tip: I always tip.
The last book I read: Michelle Obama’s The Light We Carry
The last show I binged: Succession
The last concert I went to: A jazz show at Paradise Theatre
A slightly embarrassing fact no one knows about me: I love telenovelas.
What a bad day looks like for me: A day when I’m worried about my loved ones
My first job: Cleaning offices in downtown Toronto with my mom when I was 15
My biggest pet peeve: When people are on their phones during a meal
My celebrity doppelgänger: I don’t think I have one!
My favourite curse word: Merda
My last splurge: My new Tavares jersey! It didn’t work out this season, but there’s always next year.
My biggest regret: I’ve tried to turn every regret into a lesson learned.
What I’d like written on my tombstone: "Every door she went through, she opened wider for others.”
Car, bike or TTC: TTC
Raptors, Jays, Leafs, TFC or Argos: I’m torn between the Raptors and TFC, but I’ve got to choose the Raptors. I love the energy!
My favourite watering hole: Cafe Paradise, on Bloor
The best view of the city: From Riverdale Park
The Torontonian I’d most like to spend a day with: If not my best friend, Paula, then Masai Ujiri
Where I would live if not Toronto: Portugal. I have so many family members and friends there.
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