| Maria Augimeri | |
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Toronto City Councillor
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| In office 1998 – Incumbent |
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| Preceded by | Ward created |
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| Constituency | York Centre, Ward 9 |
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Metro Toronto Councillor
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| In office 1988 – 1997 |
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| Constituency | North York |
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North York City Councillor
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| In office 1985 – 1988 |
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| Born | Italy |
| Political party | New Democratic Party (NDP) |
| Spouse(s) | Odoardo Di Santo |
| Residence | Toronto, Ontario |
| Occupation | Social Anthropologist |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Website | www.mariaaugimeri.com |
Maria Augimeri (born in Italy) is a city councillor in Toronto, Ontario for Ward 9 York Centre (representing one of the two York Centre wards).
Augimeri moved to Canada with her family at age two. Before entering politics, she was a Social Anthropologist at York University. An Italian-Canadian, she has written three books on the Italian-Canadian community and is also a published poet.
She first entered politics as a school trustee, and was elected to the city council of North York in 1985. A left-leaning member of the council, she ran for the Ontario New Democratic Party in the 1987 provincial election in the riding of Downsview. (Her husband, Odoardo Di Santo, had held the riding for ten years before losing it in the 1985 election.) In very a close race, she lost to Liberal Laureano Leone by only 174 votes.
Augimeri was elected to the Metro Toronto council in 1988, and remained on that council until the creation of the new city of Toronto in 1997. She has been elected to the new city council three times. She is known for promoting environmental awareness and cultural issues.
She was endorsed for re-election by the Toronto Star newspaper in 2003, although the Star also accused her of "hypocrisy in fighting housing for homeless youth, despite her New Democratic Party roots."[1] Augimeri had previously introduced measures which held up a housing construction project. The left-leaning Now Magazine also gave her a tepid endorsement in 2000, describing her as a "do-nothing councillor", but also claiming she was better than the opposition.[2]
Augimeri considered running for the federal New Democratic Party in York Centre in the 2004 federal election, but ultimately declined.
On November 21, 2006, Toronto's integrity commissioner "tentatively reached the conclusion" that Augimeri had committed discreditable conduct over voicemail comments she made about Councillor Peter Li Preti. Augimeri said on the tape that Li Preti was unsuitable to be a councillor and alleged he was "being actively investigated by police."[3]
On August 10, 2008, a massive propane explosion in Augimeri's riding destroyed a propane distribution facility which caused the evacuation of thousands of residents. Augimeri cut short a summer vacation in Italy and returned to Toronto to assist with the situation. During a press conference, she became involved in a heated discussion with a local resident. During the course of the argument she lost her cool and told him to "shut up", a remark that was widely reported in national media. She later apologized for the outburst.[4]
Works
- Italian-Canadians, a cross section. 1978. National Congress of Italian-Canadians. Ottawa.
- Calabrese folklore. 1985. National Museums of Canada. Ottawa.
References and notes
- ^ "Star's selections for city council". EDITORIAL Section (The Toronto Star): pp. A26. 2003-11-07. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/648567571.html?dids=648567571:648567571&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Nov+7%2C+2003&author=&pub=Toronto+Star&edition=&startpage=A.26&desc=Star%27s+selections+for+city+council. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
- ^ Anderson, Scott; Enzo Di Matteo (2000-11-09). "Now's Election PICKS a ward by ward voters' GUIDE". Newsfront (Now Magazine). http://www.nowtoronto.com/issues/2000-11-09/newsfront.html. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
- ^ Moloney, Paul (2006-11-21). "Message left by councillor probed". GTA section (The Toronto Star): pp. B1. http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/1165819971.html?dids=1165819971:1165819971&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&date=Nov+21%2C+2006&author=Paul+Moloney&pub=Toronto+Star&edition=&startpage=B.1&desc=Message+left+by+councillor+probed. Retrieved 2007-02-22.
- ^ Augimeri says sorry for ‘shut up’ outburst, says she 'blew up' after people 'took pot shots at me'. National Post. August 14, 2008. [1]
External links
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