March 18, 2026, 3:03pm
It took over 15 months, and a 21-page report, to conclude that Councillor Chris Moise (Toronto Centre) violated Article 14 of the Member Code of Conduct by hurling derogatory and hurtful remarks at an inquisitive citizen during a budget town hall in January 2025.
The Integrity Commissioner’s in-depth report concluded that Moise brought dishonour to the office in which he served by making unsubstantiated claims that the assertive constituent was a “white supremacist.”
Moise failed to apologize for the hurtful remarks, which caused reputational harm to the constituent and far exceeded the reasonable limits of political discourse. He claimed his “lived experience as a racialized individual” entitled him to make such a remark.
When the report was tabled at City Council, Moise’s council ally and former leader of the Manitoba Communist Party, Paula Fletcher, tabled a motion to edit the report, remove the sections where Moise was found to have violated the Code, and send it back to the Integrity Commissioner. City Council voted 23–0 in favour of Fletcher’s amendment, to the shock of citizens.
This miscarriage of justice was an indictment of the collusion and lack of accountability among the current group of city councillors, demonstrating a lack of respect for the office they hold.
Councillor Moise doubled down on his accusations against the constituent, Daniel Tate, reiterating the false claims that Tate is a “white nationalist.” Moise’s lack of situational awareness and race indoctrination is a stain on Council and demonstrates how unfit he is to represent the good people of Toronto Centre.
“There’s a higher bar for behaviour by those in public office. It’s an honourable position and Moise disrespected that office by maligning a constituent with hurtful, unsubstantiated claims. The fact that no penalty is being levied sends a bad message and will discourage public participation in local democracy. Criticizing a renaming should never be conflated with racism. That’s a very dangerous and irresponsible thing to do,” said Daniel Tate, Executive Director of IntegrityTO.
In the aftermath of this sordid saga, Mr. Tate went on a media tour, informing residents of Toronto about what transpired and how this scandal represents a black mark on City Council and the broader city government—undermining the Integrity Commissioner’s office itself.
At the time of writing, Tate’s media appearances on the issue have garnered hundreds of thousands of views, with near-universal support for his efforts to hold city councillors accountable.
IntegrityTO thanks the countless citizens who wrote letters in support and expressed their outrage that City Council failed to hold one of their own to account for bringing disrepute to the Office in which they took an oath to uphold.
Read the Integrity Commissioner’s report HERE
Watch Daniel discuss the matter with Greg Brady and former MP, Lisa Raitt HERE
Watch Daniel discuss the matter with Libby Znaimer HERE
