Mark Childs has announced he is withdrawing his candidacy for the Ward 5 council seat in Wallaceburg ahead of the Oct. 26 municipal election, though his name will still appear on the ballot because the nomination period has already closed.
Childs, who was running for one of two Chatham-Kent council seats representing Wallaceburg, said balancing the campaign with running his restaurant, The Black Goose, proved unworkable.
“Unfortunately, I will be withdrawing my name as a candidate for Ward 5,” Childs said on social media.
“I worked diligently these last few weeks, answering messages, phone calls and emails, happy to help find answers for everyone, but as things ramp up, I have come to realize there is no way I can run a busy restaurant and do the job of a councillor without one or the other suffering.
Childs added: “I truly appreciate all the support I have received, and I will continue working behind the scenes, doing what I can when I can. I think Wallaceburg is in good hands with at least three of the remaining candidates and I will certainly help them any way I can. Back to the original plan of running when I retire when I can do the job 100%.”
Under the Municipal Elections Act, 1996, however, there is no mechanism for a candidate to formally withdraw once the nomination period has closed.
Nomination day for the 2026 Chatham-Kent municipal election was Friday, Aug. 21, at 2 p.m., the deadline for both filing and withdrawing a nomination.
Because that deadline has passed, Childs’ name will remain on the printed ballot for Ward 5 when residents vote on Oct. 26.
Any votes cast for him will still be counted, and if he were to receive the most votes, he would still be declared elected.
14 people will be on the ballot in Wallaceburg, including: Childs, Bill Arends, Brendan Authier, Loree Bailey, Jim Blake, Dave Brundritt, Steven Burritt, Jason Debuck, Brent DeNure, Dave Hyatt, Zac Nicholson, Victoria Stewart, Bill Wolsing and Chris Young.
