Forty names will be on the ballot in the race for the mayor’s chair, when Torontonians go to the polls on Oct. 25.

Nominations closed at 2 p.m. Friday, as did the opportunity to remove one's name from the ballot.

All five highest-profile are staying in the race to replace Mayor David Miller, who is leaving office after serving two terms:

  • Coun. Rob Ford 
  • George Smitherman
  • Deputy Mayor Joe Pantalone 
  • Rocco Rossi
  • Sarah Thomson

The full list of mayoral candidates is available on the City of Toronto website.

One late addition is Weizhen Tang, who has been accused of defrauding investors in a $30-million Ponzi scheme. He returned from China to Canada to face charges. Tang has denied any wrongdoing. No allegations against him have been proven in a court of law.

Miller did tease people by showing up at city hall with $180 -- $20 short of what it costs to run for mayor.

More seriously, he said citizens should vote for whoever can best build the city.

I think they will find a way in this election to vote for a mayor and to vote for a council who know how to build this city," Miller said. "Know how to do it properly, fairly and cost effectively, but know where to spend their money for impact and build Toronto. And I expect people to do exactly that. And I’ve got confidence in them."

Pantalone is the only candidate who isn't promising aggressive cost-cutting.

Ford under attack

Ford, the presumed frontrunner, told the organizers of a Friday debate on women's issues that he is dropping out of the “Women Matter” event. Instead, he will instead be attending a barbecue.

Ford is also being mocked by a new satirical ad posted to YouTube. The ad takes its inspiration from the Old Spice Guy campaign of this past summer.

"Sadly, I don't remember this," a comedian impersonating Ford says in the video, pushing what appears to be some type of drug paraphernalia down and out of the scene. "But I remember this (a 1999 DUI conviction in Florida) and this (an assault charge that was withdrawn)."

Ford told a news conference on Aug. 19 that he had forgotten about the marijuana charge that accompanied his drunk-driving arrest. The marijuana charge was withdrawn, but Ford pleaded guilty to driving under the influence.

The video clames to be "approved by nobody and paid for by no one."

Mayoral dropouts

While there were no last-minute high-profile drop-outs from the mayoral race, two former major contenders dropped out some time ago:

Coun. Adam Giambrone left the race early this year after embarrassing revelations about his personal life surfaced shortly he declared as a mayoral candidate. Coun Giorgio Mammoliti left the race on July 9, conceding that  perhaps the city wasn't ready for his candidacy, but he promised to seek the mayor's chair again at some future point. He is seeking to hold his council seat.

Wendell Brereton, who had paid $200 to register as a mayoral candidate, dropped out on Aug. 4. The Christian fundamentalist pastor is running for a council in Ward 6 (Etobicoke Lakeshore). He has endorsed Ford, who in turn has endorsed Brereton.

Another Ford ally who hopes to gain a seat on city council is Doug Ford. He is running in Ward 2 (Etobicoke North), hoping to replace his brother there.

Council fights

This will be a relatively wide-open race as eight other council seats will be up for grabs:

  • Ward 10 (York Centre) - Mike Feldman has decided to leave council
  • Ward 15 (Eglinton-Lawrence) - Howard Moscoe is leaving council after 31 years
  • Ward 18 - Giambrone is leaving politics for now
  • Ward 19 - Joe Pantalone won't be back on council if he loses the mayoral race
  • Ward 22 (St. Paul's) - Michael Walker is leaving council
  • Ward 27 (Toronto Centre-Rosedale) - Kyle Rae is leaving council after 30 years
  • Ward 29 (Toronto-Danforth) - Case Ootes is leaving council
  • Ward 36 (Scarborough Southwest) - Brian Ashton won't be running again

A CTV Toronto reporter, Karlene Nation, has taken a leave of absence to run as a candidate in Ward 19.

Those nine wards represent about one-fifth of the 44 seats on Toronto's city council.

There are a total of 84 seats to be filled in the election:

  • mayor
  • 44 councillors
  • 39 school board trustees

There are 279 people running for city council. Here are the numbers seeking school board seats:

  • Toronto District School Board - 89
  • Toronto Catholic District School Board - 59
  • French public school board - 8
  • French Catholic school board - 2

On Oct. 4, Torontonians will start seeing candidates' lawn signs. Advance voting begins on Oct. 5 and ends on Oct. 13 at Toronto City Hall, and the East York, Etobicoke, North York, Scarborough and York civic centres.

On the weekend of Oct. 16 and 17, one advance poll will be open in each ward. The hours of operation will be from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Voters will receive an information card in early October telling them where to vote on Oct. 25. Polls will operate from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voter assist terminals will be available for those who require assistance in marking their ballot. If you will need such help, call 416-338-1111 (press '6'). You can also email AccessibleElections@toronto.ca before Oct. 18.

To make sure you're on the voters' list, call 311 if you are inside the 416 area code (TTY users should call 416-338-0889). If you are calling from elsewhere, dial 416-392-CITY (2489).