Alejandra Bravo (born 1971) is a Canadian politician who was elected to represent Ward 9 Davenport on Toronto City Council in the 2022 municipal election. Bravo has been the chair of city council's Economic and Community Development Committee since 2023.
Early life and education Bravo was born in Chile in 1971. She lived in Santiago until 1973, when the 1973 Chilean coup d'état forced her family to Canada.
Bravo earned a Bachelor of Arts in Latin American studies from the University of Toronto, before attending the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education to earn a Master of Arts in Adult Education and Community Development.
Career Prior to her election to council, Bravo worked as manager of leadership and learning for the Maytree Foundation, and as director of leadership and training at the Broadbent Institute.
Political career Early campaigns Bravo ran in the former Ward 17 Davenport in the 2003 Toronto municipal election,Royson James, "Faces of the new Toronto: Thompson, Bravo both face fight to end". Toronto Star, November 7, 2003. the 2006 Toronto municipal electionJim Byers, "Davenport sees one of craziest races in GTA; Culturally diverse, Ward 17 is most politically divided Only Vaughan has more bizarre election campaign". Toronto Star, November 9, 2006. and the 2014 Toronto municipal election,Sahar Fatima, "In Toronto's Davenport ward, a rematch for council". The Globe and Mail, October 10, 2014. finishing in second place all three times behind Cesar Palacio. She did not run in the 2010 Toronto municipal election, instead endorsing Jonah Schein as a challenger to Palacio.Laurie Monsebraaten, "City's social issues lose out to tax cuts: Mayoral candidates more focused on cutting fat than helping the poor, hungry and homeless". Toronto Star, October 11, 2010.
Bravo ran as a New Democratic Party candidate in Davenport in the 2021 Canadian federal election, losing to Julie Dzerowicz by a 76-vote margin so narrow that it was verified in a judicial recount.
2022 Toronto election Ward 9 Councillor Ana Bailão announced that she would not be seeking re-election after serving on council for 12 years, leaving the seat in Davenport open for the 2022 election. Bravo joined the race on July 5, 2022, and ran on a platform which included ending exclusionary zoning, building affordable housing, providing stronger tenant protections, improving transit and building more cycling infrastructure. She received endorsements from the Toronto Star, the city's largest newspaper and Progress Toronto, a left-wing advocacy group.
Following the election on October 24, Bravo won the ward with over 70 percent of the vote. She took office on November 15, 2022.
Toronto City Councillor In November 2022, Bravo was appointed to sit on several committees including General Government Committee, Budget Committee, Board of Health, and the Toronto Preservation Board. She was elected as Vice Chair of the Board of Health.
Following the 2023 mayoral by-election, newly elected Mayor Olivia Chow appointed Bravo as the chair of the Economic and Community Development Committee, one of the four standing committees of Toronto City Council. Bravo was also appointed as vice-chair of Striking Committee, chair of the Toronto Francophone Affairs Advisory Committee, as a member of Executive Committee, the Toronto Arts Council, and remained the vice-chair of the Board of Health.
Electoral history
Federal elections
Municipal elections 2022 Toronto municipal election, Ward 9 DavenportCandidateVotesVote shareAlejandra Bravo17,00970.72Grant Gonzales3,19213.27Shaker Jamal1,4145.88Allie Spencer8823.67Steven Leca6752.81Simon Fogel3811.58Jacob Maydansky2070.86Mosea Houghron1510.63Lazare Shorter1390.58Total24,050100%Source: City of Toronto 2014 Toronto municipal election, Ward 17 Davenport Candidate Name Number of votes % of votes Cesar Palacio 8,293 46.24 Alejandra Bravo 7,840 43.71 Saeed Selvam 1,404 7.83 George Stevens 398 2.22 Total 17,935 100
2006 Toronto municipal election, Ward 17 Davenport Candidate Votes %Cesar Palacio (incumbent) 482742.3Alejandra Bravo454639.8Fred Dominelli149113.1Cinzia Scalabrini 2111.9David Faria 2061.8Gustavo Valdez 770.7Wilson Basantes Espinoza 500.4
2003 Toronto municipal election, Ward 17 Davenport Candidate Votes %Cesar Palacio5,127 44.99Alejandra Bravo4,336 38.05David Senater 940 8.24Romolo Cimaroli 530 4.65Nicolo Fortunato 461 4.04
References