The city’s current mayor announced the bid just weeks after he was kicked out of the federal Conservative Party leadership contest. Brown is seeking his second term as mayor after being first elected in 2018. His re-election comes at a time when Brampton City Council is divided over its leadership. “I just wanted to let everyone know that after talking with my family, we’ve decided to put my name back up for mayor of Brampton,” Brown said at the press conference. “It has been the greatest privilege to serve the city for the past four years and I look forward to the next four years.” He joins Jermaine Chambers, Vidya Sagar Gautam and Cody Vatcher in the mayoral race. Brown cited funding for a new hospital, medical school, transit facility and electrified transit fleet among other economic development projects as things accomplished during his tenure. Brown also froze property taxes for four consecutive years in Brampton, a move that was popular with many voters. “We’ve done a really great job at city hall,” he said. On the social front, Brown noted his continued opposition to Quebec’s Bill 21, citing his support for religious freedoms. Earlier this month, Brown was kicked out of the race to be leader of the federal Conservative party over allegations related to an apparent breach of funding rules in the Canada Elections Act. The organizing committee for the Conservative leadership election has commented on the nature of the allegations, although Brown and his campaign have denied any wrongdoing. They are currently appealing the decision. A woman identifying herself as the whistleblower in the campaign says she personally discussed with Brown an agreement to be paid by a private company and that he approved. Brown again said there was “no wrongdoing” in his federal campaign, but said he was now focused on Brampton. “I will no longer be participating in the leadership campaign, my focus will be on building a great team here in Brampton,” he said. Responding to claims Brampton is his second choice, he said “I could serve Brampton nationally,” but said he would continue to speak for the fast-growing city. “I will be strong and I will be heard to make sure that the people in this city are never shortchanged,” he said. In the Conservative leadership race, Brown urged voters to support candidates who share the same inclusive values as people in Brampton. “I think they’ve been on the wrong side of history on marriage equality, Islamophobia and Bill 21,” he said of the federal Conservative leadership. “If we take an extreme approach, it will not be in Canada’s best interest.”
Brown is currently battling a group of 5 councillors
Shortly after he was dropped from the CPC leadership race, a group of five Brampton councilors wrote a statement saying “Democracy in Brampton is under siege because of Patrick Brown.” In the letter, they mentioned financial and contractual irregularities during the period he was mayor. They also voted in favor of a contract inquiry related to a full university for Brampton. A report by the city’s interim chief administrative officer in May found that $629,000 went to four vendors involved in the project, but staff could not find the final product for five of the “deliverables” identified in the expenses. Five city councilors wrote that most of the money went to a company that employed a close associate of Brown. Brown responded that it’s an attempt by councilors to distract from their opposition to filling a vacancy. The group of five councilors voted to appoint Elaine Moore, a former city and district councillor, to the seat of former councilor Charmaine Williams, after she was elected in Queen’s Park in the last provincial election. An Ontario judge canceled that appointment shortly thereafter. Brown, speaking to reporters afterward, welcomed the judge’s finding. He claimed Moore’s appointment was an attempt to “seize control” of the city council and called it “disastrous, wrong and illegal”. However, councilors who supported Moore’s appointment hoped she would help “unmask” issues related to Brown at Brampton city hall, as she has been critical of his tenure as mayor. Brown briefly touched on the conflict with other councilors in his speech. “The court ruled that no councilor is above the law and the councilors who opposed my tenure as mayor were deemed by the court to have broken the law,” he said. “We can never have councilors who think they are above the law.” Brown, a former leader of Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Party, has been mayor of Brampton since 2018. He resigned as PC leadership following allegations of sexual abuse dating back to his time as a federal MP. Brown has denied any wrongdoing in connection with these allegations.
