Same problem on this side of the pond (Canada). The idiot elected Mayor of Toronto actually makes me wish we had Boris Johnson as mayor - that's how bad Mayor Ford is. The race started off with 7-8 candidates, but when it became clear Ford was leading in the polls, most of them dropped off to throw their weight behind the only other candidate who had a shot at beating Ford, George Smitherman. We don't have political parties at the municipal level, but it was clear Ford was aligned with our Conservative parties (both provincial and federal). Smitherman had been a former provincial Liberal minister. All the others were former councillors. We use FPTP for EVERYTHING in Canada, so Ford won with 47%. If Joe Pantalone had dropped out of the race, Smitherman probably would have won.

It's tempting to blame the media, but they were almost all largely quite negative about Ford, pointing out that his promises and claims made zero sense. He appealed largely to the suburban parts of the city - probably because he promised to build subways all over the place while at the same time cutting taxes and the "gravy train" that he claimed City Hall was drowning in.