Longtime Chatham councillor Michael Bondy has defeated incumbent Mayor Darrin Canniff to become the next mayor of Chatham-Kent.
Bondy received 15,818 votes, or 43.4 per cent, to Canniff’s 11,501, or 31.6 per cent, a margin of 4,317 votes. Lauren Anderson, who served one term on council, finished third with 4,983 votes. Randy Hope, a former three-term mayor, was fourth with 2,818. April Colby received 570 votes, Nelson Burm 469 and Ryan Gow 251.
With all 32 tabulator locations reporting, turnout was 40.79 per cent, with 36,703 of 89,987 eligible electors casting ballots. Of those, 12,313 voted online and 24,390 at tabulators. The municipality’s results dashboard shows 44 ballots were declined and 26 were blank. The results were last updated at 10:30 p.m.
The election was the first held under the municipality’s new ward map, which moved Chatham-Kent from six wards to eight and reduced council from 18 seats to 15, including the mayor.
In Ward 5, which covers Wallaceburg and the surrounding area, Jim Blake topped the polls with 1,467 votes, or 21.6 per cent. Bill Wolsing was elected with 959 votes, or 14.1 per cent. They were followed by Zac Nicholson with 793, Brendan Authier with 698, Chris Young with 519, Mark Childs with 421, Loree Bailey with 411, David Hyatt with 335, Dave Brundritt with 308, Jason DeBuck with 242, Steven Burritt with 241, Victoria Stewart with 225, Brent DeNure with 127 and Bill Arends with 60.
In Ward 4, North West Kent, Rhonda Jubenville was re-elected with 1,436 votes, or 47.9 per cent. John Cummings finished second with 1,287 votes, or 42.9 per cent, and Kirk Hooker received 275.
Elsewhere in Chatham-Kent, Mark Authier and Melissa Harrigan won the two seats in Ward 1, South West Kent. Anthony Ceccacci and Albert Pilbeam won in Ward 2, South East Kent, and Emery Huszka won the single seat in Ward 3, North East Kent.
In Chatham, Alysson Storey and Brian Machado won in Ward 6, North West Chatham. Steve Kenney and Amy Finn won in Ward 7, North East Chatham, and Brock McGregor and Conor Allin won in Ward 8, South Chatham.
