Former Winnipeg mayor Glen Murray had been considering a run at the mayor's seat in Toronto. (Courtesy of Iain Myrans/CUI)

Glen Murray, former mayor of Winnipeg, wants to fill the provincial Liberal seat vacated by MPP George Smitherman in the Toronto Centre riding.

Smitherman, who is quitting provincial politics in the new year to begin his Toronto mayoral campaign, has given Murray his blessing to seek the Liberal nomination.

"Certainly, having the support of George Smitherman is pretty extraordinary," Murray told reporters Thursday. "These are huge shoes to fill in this constituency and I have a lot of work to do to earn my stripes."

Murray was mayor of Winnipeg from 1998 to 2004. He was the first openly gay mayor in a large North American city.

In May 2004, Murray announced his resignation — becoming the first mayor in Winnipeg's history to resign mid-term — and took a run at a Parliament seat in the 2004 federal election.

He was billed as a star candidate for the Liberal Party in the riding of Charleswood-St. James but was defeated by Conservative Steven Fletcher.

Soon after, he moved to Toronto and accepted a position as visiting fellow at the University of Toronto's Massey College. In 2005, he was appointed by prime minister Paul Martin as chair of the national round table on the environment and the economy.

He is currently president and CEO of the Canadian Urban Institute, Canada's national non-partisan urban policy institute. He also serves on Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty's advisory panel on climate change.

There is no word yet on when the Liberals will hold a nomination meeting for the riding.