--- title: "Zakir Patel: candidate for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park, Toronto 2026 | voche.me" canonical_url: "https://voche.me/on/toronto-2026/candidates/zakir-patel" last_updated: "2026-10-10T04:10:18.142Z" meta: description: "Zakir Patel is a candidate for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park, with a nomination filed on July 20, 2026. The City Clerk's declarations of res..." "og:description": "Zakir Patel is a candidate for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park, with a nomination filed on July 20, 2026. The City Clerk's declarations of res..." "og:title": "Zakir Patel: candidate for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park, Toronto 2026" "twitter:description": "Zakir Patel is a candidate for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park, with a nomination filed on July 20, 2026. The City Clerk's declarations of res..." "twitter:title": "Zakir Patel: candidate for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park, Toronto 2026" --- ** Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park · Toronto 2026 # Zakir Patel Former Toronto District School Board trustee for Ward 19, running for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park. Zakir Patel is a candidate for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park, with a nomination filed on July 20, 2026. The City Clerk's declarations of results show him elected TDSB trustee for Ward 19 in 2022 and fifth of 20 candidates, with 1,521 votes, in the Ward 25 by-election of September 29, 2025. Explore priorities Campaign links Researched by voche.me · Not a campaign-authored page Candidate space2026 ![Zakir Patel, from Zakir Patel campaign.](https://voche.me/on/toronto-2026/images/candidates/zakir-patel-640.webp) *Zakir PatelCouncillorv.* [Image: Zakir Patel campaign](https://votezakir.ca/brief-biography/) 01 / Introduction ## About Zakir Patel Zakir Patel appears on the City of Toronto's list of certified candidates for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park. A certified candidate is one whose nomination the City Clerk has accepted. The list shows the nomination date as July 20, 2026 and gives his campaign website, votezakir.ca. voche.me treats that site as the campaign's own statement. The Toronto District School Board's Ward 19 Trustee Bio page describes him as Vice Chair of the TDSB and Ward 19 Trustee for Scarborough-Guildwood since 2018, and says that in the past year he chaired the Finance, Budget and Enrolment Committee, was a Director of the Toronto Lands Corporation and sat on the Board's Negotiations Steering Committee. The page carries no date, so voche.me gives no year for those committee roles. The City Clerk's declaration of results for the October 24, 2022 general election lists a Zakir Patel first among 6 candidates for TDSB trustee in Ward 19, marked elected, with 5,791 of the 12,380 votes declared for that race (46.8 percent, calculated by voche.me). The Local's 2026 tracker says his trustee term ran from 2018 until 2025, when trustee roles were eliminated after the province put the TDSB under supervision. voche.me read no board minutes, so it states no vote or motion from his time as trustee. The City Clerk's declaration of results for the September 29, 2025 by-election lists him fifth among 20 candidates for Councillor in Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park, with 1,521 votes. Neethan Shan was elected with 5,174. The 20 declared totals add up to 19,260 votes, so Patel's share was 7.9 percent, calculated by voche.me from those figures. The Local's 2026 tracker describes this by-election as one for Ward 19. The City's declaration, which lists the 20 candidates under Ward 25, is the source voche.me follows. His campaign website, the campaign's own account, says he arrived in Ontario in 1995, bought a grocery business in 1999, studied business administration at Centennial College, began volunteering in political campaigns in 2003 and was elected a TDSB trustee in 2018. It says he served in leadership roles at the TDSB from 2018 to 2025, including Vice-Chair. The Centennial Community and Recreation Association's candidate listing describes him as a longtime Scarborough resident and West Hill resident. His campaign website lists seven priorities. They are affordability, with property tax increases kept reasonable, respect for tax dollars through scrutiny of spending, safer communities with community-based policing and visible neighbourhood presence, responsible growth with community consultation, accountability at City Hall on project budgets and timelines, transit with more frequent bus service and converting Red Lanes into lanes for vehicles with several occupants, and support for families and seniors. TTCriders' Ward 25 page records "No response" from him to each of its 18 transit questions, and Build Canada's page lists him among the candidates who had not yet answered its questionnaire. Read the sources 02 / The issues ## Priorities & positions Campaign-source summary Summarized from the campaign’s published profile. These are stated positions, not an assessment of results or a complete platform. 01 ### Affordability and respect for tax dollars, as his campaign states His home page says he would keep property tax increases reasonable and affordable, review City fees and push for greater scrutiny of City spending and contracts. [Zakir Patel · campaign home page ](https://votezakir.ca/) 02 ### Safer, stronger communities, as his campaign states His home page lists stronger community-based policing and visible neighbourhood presence, traffic safety, and youth recreation and prevention programs. [Zakir Patel · campaign home page ](https://votezakir.ca/) 03 ### Responsible growth, as his campaign states His home page says new housing should come with meaningful community consultation and infrastructure that keeps pace with population growth. [Zakir Patel · campaign home page ](https://votezakir.ca/) 04 ### Accountability for capital projects, as his campaign states His home page lists clear budgets and timelines before major projects begin, regular public reporting and scrutiny when projects exceed approved budgets. [Zakir Patel · campaign home page ](https://votezakir.ca/) 05 ### Transit that works for everyone, as his campaign states His home page lists more frequent bus service on busy Scarborough routes and converting Red Lanes into lanes for buses and qualifying vehicles with several occupants. [Zakir Patel · campaign home page ](https://votezakir.ca/) [TDSB · Ward 19 Trustee Bio](https://www.tdsb.on.ca/ward19/Ward-19/Trustee-Bio) [City Clerk · Declaration of Results, 2025 Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park by-election](https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/97f1-Declaration-of-Results-Councillor-Ward-25-ByElection.pdf) [City Clerk · Declaration of Results, 2022 Toronto municipal election](https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/9085-FinalDeclaration-of-Results-for-the-2022-Toronto-Municipal-Election.pdf) Research status ## What voche.me has checked Evidence reviewed on October 4, 2026: the City of Toronto's list of certified candidates, the City Clerk's declarations of results for the 2022 election and the 2025 by-election, the TDSB's Ward 19 Trustee Bio page, two pages of his campaign website (home and Brief Biography), The Local's Ward 25 tracker and its 2025 by-election profile, TTCriders' and Build Canada's Ward 25 pages, and the Centennial Community and Recreation Association's candidate listing. Every statement taken from his campaign website is written as the campaign's own account. Ward context. The City's Members of Council page for Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park lists Councillor Neethan Shan, and the City Clerk's declaration of results for the September 29, 2025 by-election names him elected. The City's list of certified candidates shows 10 candidates for Councillor in the ward: Shawn Allen, Dharshan Casinathen, Ashan Fernando, Somas Kaneshapillai, Jannette Lumley, Zakir Patel, Dianna Robinson, Neethan Shan, Kannan S'ree Jr and Vane Stavrev. The 2025 by-election results name Patel, Shawn Allen, Dianna Robinson and Ashan Fernando among 20 candidates besides Shan. The ward's community associations list a candidate marketplace on October 10, 2026 and a candidate forum on October 13, 2026, both after the research date. Gaps. The City's decisions site and the TDSB's minutes were not searched for votes, so no vote or motion is cited. The City decisions site returned HTTP 403, and Patel holds no City office. His X account, linked from his site, showed only a profile header and no posts when opened, so nothing from social media is used. His site's Endorsements page was empty. The campaign figures on his home page, such as years in Scarborough, governance decisions and healthcare fundraising, are not repeated because no source other than the campaign supports them. The questionnaire has not been sent. [City of Toronto · list of certified candidates](https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/elections/candidate-list/) [City Clerk · Declaration of Results, 2025 Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park by-election](https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/97f1-Declaration-of-Results-Councillor-Ward-25-ByElection.pdf) [City Clerk · Declaration of Results, 2022 Toronto municipal election](https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/9085-FinalDeclaration-of-Results-for-the-2022-Toronto-Municipal-Election.pdf) [TDSB · Ward 19 Trustee Bio](https://www.tdsb.on.ca/ward19/Ward-19/Trustee-Bio) [Zakir Patel · campaign home page](https://votezakir.ca/) [Zakir Patel · campaign Brief Biography page](https://votezakir.ca/brief-biography/) [The Local · Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park candidate tracker, updated September 21, 2026](https://thelocal.to/ward-25-scarborough-rouge-park-2026/) [The Local · Here Are the Scarborough-Rouge Park By-Election Candidates](https://thelocal.to/srp2025/) [TTCriders · Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park candidate responses](https://www.ttcriders.ca/2026ward25) [Build Canada · Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park candidate page](https://www.buildcanada.com/toronto/vote/2026/wards/25) [Centennial Community and Recreation Association · Meet your candidates for councillor in Ward 25](https://ccranews.com/get-out-and-vote-on-october-26/) 03 / Background ## Experience & community 2018 to 2025, as listed by the TDSB and The Local ### TDSB Trustee, Ward 19 Scarborough-Guildwood The TDSB's Ward 19 Trustee Bio page describes him as Ward 19 Trustee since 2018 and Vice Chair of the Board. The Local says the term ended in 2025 when trustee roles were eliminated. [TDSB · Ward 19 Trustee Bio](https://www.tdsb.on.ca/ward19/Ward-19/Trustee-Bio) October 24, 2022 general election ### Elected TDSB trustee, Ward 19 The City Clerk's declaration lists a Zakir Patel first of 6 candidates with 5,791 votes. [City Clerk · Declaration of Results, 2022 Toronto municipal election](https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/9085-FinalDeclaration-of-Results-for-the-2022-Toronto-Municipal-Election.pdf) September 29, 2025 by-election ### Candidate for Councillor, Ward 25 The City Clerk's declaration lists him fifth of 20 candidates with 1,521 votes. [City Clerk · Declaration of Results, 2025 Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park by-election](https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/97f1-Declaration-of-Results-Councillor-Ward-25-ByElection.pdf) 04 / Questions & answers ## Questions for the candidate Proposed questions for a future interview. They have not been sent to the candidate, and no answers have been supplied. No questions and answers have been supplied. ### Have your own question? Ask Zakir Patel directly. We send it to the campaign, and publish the reply here if we get one. 05 / About this page ## Questions about this page Facts voche.me can state about Zakir Patel's page itself, answered directly rather than left blank.
Is this an official page for Zakir Patel? No. This page is researched by voche.me from public sources, listed below, and is separate from Zakir Patel's own campaign.
Does Zakir Patel currently hold public office? Not according to this profile. voche.me has not listed a current public office for Zakir Patel.
How many sources does this Zakir Patel profile cite? This profile lists 11 sourced references, each with the date voche.me checked it, in the Sources section below.
Why do some questions on Zakir Patel's page show no answer? The "Questions & answers" section on this page lists questions voche.me would put to Zakir Patel in a future interview. They have not been sent yet, so the page says plainly that no answer has been supplied instead of leaving the section blank.
When is the election Zakir Patel is running in? The 2026 Toronto municipal election, including the Councillor race, is decided on October 26, 2026.
06 / Candidate contributions ## Space for campaign updates ### No campaign updates yet Announcements, event details and messages can be added here, with their source and publication date. No campaign submission has been added. ## Sources & transparency - [City of Toronto · list of certified candidates ](https://www.toronto.ca/city-government/elections/candidate-list/)Checked October 4, 2026 - [City Clerk · Declaration of Results, 2025 Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park by-election ](https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/97f1-Declaration-of-Results-Councillor-Ward-25-ByElection.pdf)Checked October 4, 2026 - [City Clerk · Declaration of Results, 2022 Toronto municipal election ](https://www.toronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/9085-FinalDeclaration-of-Results-for-the-2022-Toronto-Municipal-Election.pdf)Checked October 4, 2026 - [TDSB · Ward 19 Trustee Bio ](https://www.tdsb.on.ca/ward19/Ward-19/Trustee-Bio)Checked October 4, 2026 - [Zakir Patel · campaign home page ](https://votezakir.ca/)Checked October 4, 2026 - [Zakir Patel · campaign Brief Biography page ](https://votezakir.ca/brief-biography/)Checked October 4, 2026 - [The Local · Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park candidate tracker, updated September 21, 2026 ](https://thelocal.to/ward-25-scarborough-rouge-park-2026/)Checked October 4, 2026 - [The Local · Here Are the Scarborough-Rouge Park By-Election Candidates ](https://thelocal.to/srp2025/)Checked October 4, 2026 - [TTCriders · Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park candidate responses ](https://www.ttcriders.ca/2026ward25)Checked October 4, 2026 - [Build Canada · Ward 25 Scarborough-Rouge Park candidate page ](https://www.buildcanada.com/toronto/vote/2026/wards/25)Checked October 4, 2026 - [Centennial Community and Recreation Association · Meet your candidates for councillor in Ward 25 ](https://ccranews.com/get-out-and-vote-on-october-26/)Checked October 4, 2026 Missing information does not imply a candidate’s position. [Read our editorial standards.](https://voche.me/on/toronto-2026/about) Campaign contact ## Campaign links & contact. Find the candidate’s website, social accounts and contact information. [Zakir Patel · campaign website](https://votezakir.ca/) ## View more candidates. [All candidate spaces ](https://voche.me/on/toronto-2026/candidates) [Councillor**Aanchal Vashistha**](https://voche.me/on/toronto-2026/candidates/aanchal-vashistha) [Councillor**Aaron Lal**](https://voche.me/on/toronto-2026/candidates/aaron-lal) Candidate Q&A ## Ask Zakir Patel a question. Give your name, email and question. We send it to the campaign, and publish their answer here if we get one. ## Sitemap See the full [sitemap](/on/toronto-2026/sitemap.md) for all pages.