{"id":917628,"date":"2026-10-02T08:42:20","date_gmt":"2026-10-02T08:42:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/917628\/"},"modified":"2026-10-02T08:42:20","modified_gmt":"2026-10-02T08:42:20","slug":"bad-blood-personal-insults-mark-mississauga-mayoral-debate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/917628\/","title":{"rendered":"Bad blood, personal insults mark Mississauga mayoral debate"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cOur staff are terrified of the blonde bombshell coming back,\u201d Carolyn Parrish lashed out at Bonnie Crombie during Thursday evening\u2019s heated Mississauga mayoral debate<\/a>, marking one of several moments where municipal concerns took a back seat to personal insults.<\/p>\n

Crombie, a former three-term Mississauga mayor, and Parrish, the incumbent seeking re-election, didn\u2019t mince words during the 90-minute debate moderated by CityNews\u2019 Mark McAllister.<\/p>\n

The other two participants, candidates Dipika Damerla and Alvin Tedjo, said the behaviour between the two was further proof that change is needed at city hall.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think people are tired of it,\u201d Tedjo said during the post-debate scrums.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the real concern is there\u2019s all these personal attacks, we\u2019ve seen the two former mayors, especially, attack each other online \u2014 and in person tonight \u2014 and people are tired of it. They want new, hopeful visions for the future for their city.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tedjo, however, wasn\u2019t above throwing some mud, saying Crombie \u201cquit\u201d on the residents of Mississauga when she stepped down as mayor to seek the leadership of the Ontario Liberal Party.<\/p>\n

But Tedjo\u2019s comment seemed innocuous in comparison to the venom spewed between Crombie and Parrish, as they insulted and openly questioned each other\u2019s character, work ethic, and competence as politicians.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt times I felt like it was kindergarten,\u201d Damerla said afterwards.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was disappointing at times to see candidates personally attacking each other, that\u2019s not my style to personally attack. I think it\u2019s disappointing, but it also tells you it\u2019s time for change and that\u2019s why we need change.\u201d<\/p>\n

Crombie and Parrish both agreed things got out of hand, but blamed each other for the escalation.<\/p>\n

Crombie said Parrish\u2019s \u201cblonde bombshell\u201d comment was not \u201cuntypical of the mayor.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe does treat residents with the same sort of disrespect,\u201d she said<\/p>\n

\u201cI would hope that the tone and tenor of the future debates, maybe we can lower the temperature, I think we lost control a little bit.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there were a lot of very underhanded, mean-spirited statements made that were not worthy of a person in that position.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cVoices were rising,\u201d Crombie admitted. \u201cTemperaments were rising, I think we really need to tone it down.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked why she called Crombie a \u201cblonde bombshell,\u201d Parrish said it was \u201cbecause she was yelling at everyone else and I had to get a word in edge-wise.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt got a little out of control,\u201d she conceded before rapidly pointing the finger back at her rival. <\/p>\n

\u201cI think (Crombie) accelerated it and the rest of us just got dragged along. You can\u2019t stand there and let her interrupt you all night and you can\u2019t stand there and let her say things about you that aren\u2019t true and not defend yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

When asked what she said that wasn\u2019t true about her, Parrish seemed to take offence to Crombie\u2019s comment that she sat in her office being unproductive.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat I sit behind my desk all the time, anyone who wants to look at my logs, probably 50 meetings a week,\u201d Parrish said.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\tKeep it Factual<\/p>\n

Add CityNews Toronto as a trusted source on Google to see more local stories from us.<\/p>\n

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