A new poll shows Toronto mayoralty hopeful and blowhard Rob Ford on top, ahead of George Smitherman. The poll shows Ford at 17.8% support compared to Smitherman at 15.9%. Keep in mind that it is a small poll with a margin of error of 3.1%. Rocco Rossi is at 9%.  Joe Pantalone is at 10.1%; Sarah Thomson is at 5.8% and Giorgio Mammoliti is at 2.5%.

Mr. Pantalone has the support of labour and the left. Everyone I know will tell you Pantalone is a good man, but maybe not the right fellow for mayor. He also carries the weight of outgoing Mayor David Miller’s legacy, and Miller is not leaving as a popular mayor.

There is a huge undecided vote out there and as well there is the usual problem of indifference – lots of people simply don’t bother to vote. Still, the message from this poll is that a crowded middle may allow Ford to creep ahead. Rob Ford has struck a nerve with Torontonians with his message of frugality and accountability. I think he has a place on council, keeping the other guys honest, but I’m pretty sure I don’t want him to be Toronto’s mayor. I think to keep Ford at bay, some of the candidates in the middle will have to bow out early.

A week or so ago there was talk about drafting former politician and now popular radio host John Tory as a candidate. Mr. Tory has become quite a popular guy in Toronto now that he’s not running for office, by virtue of his afternoon radio show on Newstalk 1010. If Tory jumped in, he’d be one more candidate in the middle, muddying the waters further still.

Right now, I don’t see a candidate that I can fully throw my support behind. There’s a bunch of administrators and one blowhard competing for the position, but I don’t see anyone who is really a fantastic fit to represent the City. Do you? If the election were tomorrow, I’m not sure how I would vote. I’m reminded of the late Utah Phillips, who used to say, “If God wanted us to vote, he’d have given us candidates.”