In the run-up to this month’s municipal election, the Star is profiling several key battleground races, offering intimate portraits of the candidates and the issues moving voters. In today’s spotlight, Parkdale—High Park.
The name Gord Perks reigned supreme in Parkdale—High Park for almost two decades. But following the veteran councillor’s retirement from City Hall, a new crop of candidates are competing for his empty seat.
They include a trio of contenders who are each campaigning on their own broadly progressive vision for this consistently left-leaning ward.
Perhaps the most recognizable name on the Ward 4 ballot is the one endorsed by the longtime progressive champion Perks himself. But for Diana Chan McNally, the campaign season has become a lesson in how quickly a candidate’s private life can become public business.
Over the past few weeks, McNally has faced criticism for giving local media incorrect information about herself — including her own age — and for what she calls a “clerical error” that led to an incorrect bio in City of Toronto documents.
The episodes have led to news stories and constituent questions probing the longtime community worker and housing-rights advocate’s campaign. But they’re ones she says she can explain.
“There’s nothing that’s being hidden.”
The candidates
McNally’s campaign, backed by her experience as a front-line community worker and as a public member on the city’s Housing Rights Advisory Committee, has earned other high-profile endorsements, including from former mayor David Miller, Parkdale—High Park MPP Alexa Gilmour, Progress Toronto, a major force in the city’s municipal politics.
Speaking to the Star, she said she wants “to continue the legacy” Perks has been building in the Ward.
She highlighted Perks’ work as chair of the Planning and Housing Committee, particularly as an advocate for the city’s Multi-Unit Rental Acquisition program, which helps non-profit housing providers acquire existing rental buildings and preserve them as permanently affordable housing.
The program was pioneered in High Park.
“I think that’s something that we should carry on as well as the environmental legacy of the ward itself,” she said.
Whether or not Perks’ support is a boon is up for debate.
Greg Homonylo, member of neighbourhood group Our Swansea Matters, told the Star that some community members “don’t want another four years of Perks.”
“Unfortunately, a lot of people here are thinking ‘Out with the old, in with something new,’” Homonylo said — a hurdle that McNally herself acknowledged.
Name recognition could play a significant role in the race, with Debbie King, who was elected TDSB trustee for Parkdale—High Park in 2022, and Nadia Guerrera, who ran as the Ontario Liberal candidate in the ward in the 2025 provincial election, the two other high-profile candidates.
McNally and Guerrera have managed to garner support from many Liberal and NDP party members. But King, however, says her support extends beyond traditional party lines.
“I’m very proud of the campaign I’m running that doesn’t have the political backing as some of the other candidates do,” she said.
While King has the support of the Toronto York Region Labour Council, she says she’s especially encouraged by the community members “that are really excited to see, in particular, Black female leadership in this ward.”
This, she noted, is a similar motivation and support that led to her role as a trustee.
Guerrera, meanwhile, has attracted a litany of prominent political endorsements, including that of former Ontario Liberal premier Kathleen Wynne. She is also looking to distinguish herself from both McNally and King, whose NDP affiliations could appeal to some of the same voters.
While Guerrera applauded incumbent Perks’ “strong commitment to social justice,” saying she has “a lot of respect” for the outgoing councillor, she told the Star that constituents argue that his approach was ideological and “could create division where there needn’t be division.”
“They found him very difficult to get a hold of,” Guerrera said, highlighting plans to ensure her office is on main street so community members have easy access. “They didn’t always feel like he was as proactive and responsive as they would’ve liked.”
The controversy around Diana Chan McNally
In September, the Local ran a profile on McNally campaign, calling her “Toronto’s most well-known defender of the unhoused.” But the outlet temporarily pulled the story soon after receiving information that called into question part of her account of her life as a teen experiencing homelessness.
Speaking about her past, McNally had told a difficult account of how she had given birth to a child at age 15 and had to put the baby up for adoption. In a followup call with the Local, McNally acknowledged she had actually been 17 when she gave birth.
Further, she was 43 now, not 41, as she initially said.
Inside a quiet coffee shop near her campaign office on Dundas West, McNally told the Star she’d said these things deliberately out of concern that sharing certain details accurately could make it easier to connect her daughter to her past.
She explained the child was eventually taken by children’s aid, and she remains unsure whether her daughter knows she was adopted.
“Ethically, it was always to protect the identity of my daughter,” McNally said.
The Local republished the story soon after McNally corrected the record.
“There are a lot of people supporting this campaign and who want to see a progressive vision for Parkdale—High Park,” she said. “If all (the people who oppose me) can do is drag up my experiences as a minor, then we’re doing great.”
McNally has also faced criticism for the fact online biographies for her role on the Housing Rights Advisory Committee (where her term runs until November 2026) mentioned a Master of Education degree.
In fact, she never completed that degree, but she said she was open about this in her application.
“I don’t actually record all these bios myself,” she said. “It was on several websites where it was actually put incorrectly. When I applied for the City of Toronto position at committee, it was correct.”
Asked about the incident, Deputy city clerk Kelly McCarthy explained generally that when an individual is recommended for an appointment, they are told that their name and the biography they provided in their application will be published in the minutes of a meeting.
Perks himself said McNally’s incomplete Master’s degree was never concealed in private conversations.
The key issues for Ward 4
At recent Parkdale—High Park election meetings, residents’ key concerns ranged from housing affordability and tenant protection to community consultations surrounding shelter and housing proposals, and more localized issues such as car access in High Park.
While McNally, King and Guerrera’s platforms appear similar in many ways, one of the most contentious issues in the race — a proposed redevelopment at 21 Windermere Avenue, known as Swansea Mews — exposed slight divisions among the Ward 4 candidates.
Guerrera has backed a review, environmental scrutiny and stronger community consultation. King has acknowledged concerns about rushed planning and inadequate engagement, but her commitments stop short of an unequivocal call to revisit the plan. McNally, meanwhile, has defended the existing development, aligning her position with Perks’.
Despite their differences in background and experience, McNally, King, and Guerrera share broadly similar priorities, from housing affordability to safer neighbourhoods. The distinctions, it appears, lie less in the problems they identify than in how they propose to address them.
