CP24 released further results today of a poll it conducted that show Toronto voters believe Rob Ford is the mayoral candidate who can "manage tax dollars best." Ford received 39.5 per cent of the vote in the poll commissioned by CP24, CTV and The Globe and Mail. The poll also showed Ford leading in this regard in every area of the city. Smitherman trailed Ford at 24.4 and Pantalone at 12.3 per cent. Asked if they were willing to pay more taxes for improved services, a majority said they were not, but the numbers were closer among Smitherman and Pantalone's supporters than among Ford's. CP24 claims the poll is the "most comprehensive in the election so far," with a sample size of 1000.

With many people jumping on the "anybody-but-Ford" train, signs of restlessness in the race for mayor are beginning to reveal themselves. Case in point: a press release from the George Smitherman campaign, released yesterday, announced the defection of six former Rocco Rossi campaign team members to Smitherman's camp. The loss of the defectors, which include Rossi's former campaign manager, was downplayed by Rossi's team, as they pointed out all but one had already left the campaign weeks ago. However, the news comes as only one part of a seemingly larger, growing movement. Smitherman seems to have managed to position himself as the Ford alternative in the race. Smitherman, for his part, insists he doesn't need to "bludgeon" voters by spelling things out: "I think they know what they're dealing with. You know, his mug shot was on the front of the Toronto Sun."

Someone has tried to take the Toronto mayoral race to a much nastier place. Some time last night, about 10 plastic signs were placed along University Avenue, each white with black lettering reading, "Wife-beating, racist drunk for Mayor!" They had been put up in the flower beds in the median on University south of Dundas Street West, until Frank, a last-nameless contractor on his way to work, took them down. "I just don't think it's a fair run at the race," Frank said. "I know they should talk about the real political issues." Frank says he isn't working with any candidate's campaign and won't say who he thinks the signs were aimed at. Any guesses?

A small airplane made an emergency landing on Highway 407 late last night, whilst somehow causing no injuries or traffic accidents. The 407 was closed from Warden to Woodbine last night as the plane, which is registered to a Toronto resident, was towed to Buttonville airport. Few details are available on what problems the pilot encountered; a telephone call to the plane's registered address was picked up by the pilot's wife, who said her husband, who she says is a "meticulous and detailed person" and has been a pilot for more than 10 years, told her that his engine had stopped and forced him to land. So, er, what's the toll like for planes?

Outgoing Mayor of Toronto David Miller is expected to announce this morning his endorsement of his deputy mayor, Joe Pantalone, as the next mayor of Toronto. Apparently, Miller will make the announcement during an event at the Canadian Centre for Language and Cultural Studies. Pantalone's website hinted briefly at the endorsement in a statement issued yesterday. Pantalone, though a relatively distant third in the polls, has also earned endorsements from NDP Leader Jack Layton and from Stephen Lewis, the former Canadian ambassador to the UN.

Miller's endorsement, assuming all the speculation is correct, comes on the heels of councillor Joe Mihevc's call for his constituents to vote for George Smitherman in an "anybody-but-Ford" initiative reminiscent of the kind Sarah Thomson has called for since dropping out of the mayoral race. Mihevc has said he would have liked to endorse Pantalone, but that he doesn't believe ol' Joe can win. Ouch.

Speculation surrounding Rocco Rossi's plans to bow out of the mayoral race is entirely unfounded, according to the Rossi campaign. And to prove their point, Rocco's camp released a preview of his fiscal plan, in which he says he can balance the city's budget with the transit subsidization that Smitherman's plan requires. Rossi's budget would rely on attrition, control of discretionary spending and "expanding outsourcing" to drop $132-million from the city's spending next year. It does not include the tax cuts or freezes promised by his competition; instead his long-term plan is to reduce union salary increases and outsource garbage collection. Following rumours that Rossi's co-campaign chair might jump ship, speculation about Rossi bowing out of the campaign, a la Sarah Thomson, has increased. Rossi himself says "I'm not a quitter and I'm in it to win it and I'm putting my money and my organization where my mouth is." But wait - isn't that what Sarah said?