OTTAWA – Liberal MP Jim Karygiannis is quitting the federal political arena after 25 years to enter Toronto municipal politics.

The controversial MP says he intends to run for city council in a ward which overlaps much of the Scarborough-Agincourt riding he’s represented since 1988.

Karygiannis says his decision was prompted by a desire to spend more time with his wife, five grown daughters and elderly mother, while continuing to defend the interests of his constituents.

However, the 58-year-old may also have concluded that his talent for bare-knuckle organizing — employed by both Jean Chretien and Paul Martin to secure the party’s leadership — is unlikely to be valued by Justin Trudeau.

The new leader has declared he won’t tolerate the nasty infighting that he believes contributed to the decline of the once-mighty Liberals into a third-party rump.

Trudeau’s team sent a strong signal on that front last month, barring Christine Innes from running for the Liberal nomination in Toronto’s Trinity-Spadina after receiving complaints about alleged bullying and intimidation tactics by her husband, former MP Tony Ianno.