A handful of long-time incumbents lost their seats on Monday night during the 2018 Chatham-Kent Election.
Most notably, Randy Hope was ousted by Darrin Canniff in the Mayor’s race.
The Chatham Councillor gathered 19,316 votes (56.01%) to become Chatham-Kent’s next Mayor.
Alysson Storey finished second at the polls with 9,255 votes (26.83%).
Hope, the three-time elected and longest tenured Mayor in Chatham-Kent history, finished third with 4,722 votes (13.69%).
Harold Atkinson, was fourth with 675 votes (1.96%), Robert Salvatore Powers was fifth with 351 (1.02%) and Allan Robert Traylor was sixth with 170 votes (0.49%).
Ward 1 – West Kent
Incumbent Mark Authier led the polls in West Kent gathering 1,991 votes (39.32%).
Political rookie Melissa Harrigan grabbed the second seat in Ward 1 gathering 1,682 votes (33.22%).
Veteran Councillor Bryon Fluker lost his seat on Monday, finishing third in the race with 1,050 votes (20.74%).
Mark Pastorius, 252 votes (4.98%) and Jordan Dell, 88 votes (1.74%), rounded out the voting for the Ward, which encompasses Tilbury, Wheatley and Merlin.
Ward 2 – South Kent
Incumbent Trevor Thompson led the polls once again in South Kent and will keep hios seat for a second term.
Thompson gathered 3,723 votes (25.26%).
Two newcomers finished second and third at the polls to grab to two remaining seats in Ward 2.
Anthony Ceccacci gathered 1967 votes (13.34%) and Mary Clare Latimer finished with 1,910 votes (12.96%).
Incumbent Frank Vercouteren lost his seat on Monday, gathering 1,840 votes (12.48%) to finish fourth.
Former South Kent Coun. Art Stirling failed to re-claim his seat, finished fifth in the Ward 2 voting with 1,541 votes (10.45%).
Henry Svec, 1,281 votes (8.69%), Tanya Bondy, 1,276 votes (8.66%) and Amy Ramsden Dalton, 1,202 votes (8.15%) rounded out the voting in South Kent, which encompasses the communities of Blenheim, Erieau, North and South Buxton, Shrewbury, Charing Cross and Cedar Springs.
Ward 3 – East Kent
Incumbent Steve Pinsonneault secured his seat on Chatham-Kent Council on Monday night gathering 2,541 votes (39.48%).
John Wright won the second seat with 2,023 votes (31.43%).
Mary Ann Hawthorne finished with 1,872 votes (29.09%).
Current East Kent Coun. David Vandamme had filed his papers for re-election, but dropped out on the final day. He is seeking the Conservative Party of Canada nomination in the Chatham-Kent-Leamington riding.
Ward 6 – Chatham
Former Chatham Councillor and mayoral candidate Marjorie Crew re-gained her spot on Council, gathering the most votes in Ward 6 with 7,589 (10.87%).
Incumbents Michael Bondy, 7,552 votes (10.82%), Brock McGregor, 7,267 (10.41%), and Doug Sulman, 6,565 (9.40%) finished second, third and fourth in the voting to secure their seats.
Newcomers Karen Kirkwood-Whyte, 5,893 votes (8.44%), and Amy Finn, 5,753 votes (8.24%), claimed the last two seats in Ward 6.
Here is the rest of the field who came up short in Chatham:
– Larry Vellinga, 5,698 votes (8.16%)
– Don Fuoco, 5,449 votes (7.80%)
– Don ‘Sparky’ Leonard, 4,576 (6.55%)
– Kirk Hooker, 3,301 votes (4.73%)
– Penelope Duchesne, 2,960 votes (4.24%)
– Chris June, 2,687 votes (3.85%)
– Ryan Jackson, 1,432 votes (2.05%)
– Gordon Thomas, 1,127 votes (1.61%)
– Les Banks, 740 votes (1.06%)
– James Thompson, 668 votes (0.96%)
– Drew Simpson, 564 votes (0.81%)
