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Jose Canseco Wanted to Run for Mayor of Toronto, But Lack of Canadian Citizenship Derailed Plan

Jose Canseco is many things. Baseball player, author, thinker … mayor?

Well, not quite. Despite expressing an interest in joining politics as one of his New Year’s resolutions, the former American League MVP is backing off his plan to run for mayor of Toronto.

Earlier this week, Canseco claimed that in 2013, he wanted to “Get elected to a important political office in the U.S. or [Canada] a to help all people and governments with [their] problems.”

When prodded on the issue by the Toronto Star, the former slugger didn’t back down, and laid out his platform to run against incumbent Toronto mayor Rob Ford, who could be facing a special election to keep his job.

“Gotta fix budget, traffic, get new [money] not from taxes, get more new businesses, and help schools,” Canseco declared.

Lest the public assume that Canseco wasn’t taking it lightly, the player’s agent weighed in on the situation, too. The biggest obstacle, it seemed, would not be a lack of commitment, but a lack of Canadian citizenship.

“He is serious about a run but as you know he doesn’t know the procedure for citizenship,” Jose Melendez told the Star. “He loved Toronto and he is actually very respected in Canada. He feels he can make a difference.”

However, after sleeping on the decision, the fact that Canseco is an American citizen seems to be too big of a mountain to overcome. Canseco admitted that in the end, he would not be going after Ford’s job.

“It’s a good cause and I know I can do well,” Canseco told the Star. “But I am not a citizen so it’s a moot point.”

Photo via Twitter/@JoseCanseco