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A solid majority of incumbent Ottawa city councillors are planning to stand for re-election this year.
The municipal election is set for Oct. 26, and candidates have until August to file their nomination paperwork. Plans can shift during those months, but at least 19 of the 24 sitting councillors currently intend to run again.
Mayor Mark Sutcliffe, the 25th member of council, has repeatedly said he is planning to seek re-election.
That has some city hall watchers bracing for a different race than in 2022, when only 13 incumbents were on the ballot.
Twenty-two councillors responded to CBC’s request to confirm their 2026 intentions. Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper is planning a run for mayor and cannot simultaneously run for his council seat. Of the 21 others, all but two said they are planning to run.
Both Alta Vista Coun. Marty Carr and Stittsville Coun. Glen Gower said they are undeclared.
Several councillors including Barrhaven West’s David Hill, Orléans West-Innes’s Laura Dudas and Riverside South-Findlay Creek’s Steve Desroches told CBC they have unfinished business that they want to see through over the coming term.
Bay ward Coun. Theresa Kavanagh said she wants to be there for the opening of the LRT west extension through her ward.
“It takes a long time to get things done,” she said. “I think that’s the reason a lot of councillors have to stick around sometimes. Otherwise, they’re not going to see the results of their work.”
Kanata South Coun. Allan Hubley, one of the two longest-serving members of council, is eyeing a fifth straight run.
“My family and community are supportive and my health is good so I will continue organizing and calling supporters to get ready,” said Hubley, who was first elected in 2010.
The newest member of council, Isabelle Skalski, has only been in office for seven months after winning a byelection in Osgoode.
Now, she’s getting ready to do it all over again. She said the campaign is still so fresh that her mind hasn’t really had time to shift out of election mode.
Osgoode Coun. Isabelle Skalksi won her seat in a byelection just seven months ago, and is now preparing for another run. (Salah Tebessi/CBC)
In June, she won in an open race. Now, as an incumbent, she’s expecting a different campaign.
“Now you have to defend your record,” Skalski said. “So I think right now my focus is to get to deliver as much as I can so that it’s an easy check for the person coming to the ballot box.”
3rd-party group to target incumbents
The prospect of so many more incumbents seeking re-election this time around is prompting a shift in strategies.
“We’re looking at a much different campaign than last time,” said Tom Ledgley, co-ordinator of Horizon Ottawa, an advocacy group that typically endorses progressive candidates in city elections.
But instead of choosing one specific candidate to endorse in each ward, Horizon is now planning to canvass against sitting councillors by drawing attention to their voting record, developer donations and public statements.
Tom Ledgley is co-ordinator of Horizon Ottawa, a municipal advocacy group. (/Michel Aspirot CBC)
Ledgley noted that negative campaigning doesn’t always reflect well on a candidate, so he’s hoping his group can take on that job instead.
“We see a big part of our role in stepping in and sharing some of that information,” he said. “So the candidates who are challenging these incumbents don’t necessarily have to.”
With fewer open seats, Horizon Ottawa is looking to marshal its forces against a few specific candidates.
“There’s going to be a lot more focus on unseating incumbents, which is a much greater challenge,” he said.
Every one of the 13 incumbents who ran in 2022 won re-election.
“So that’s one of the big reasons why we’re looking at that more narrow focus on a few specific wards,” Ledgley said, “because we think we’re going to need to really put as much energy as we can to have a hope of maybe unseating some incumbents.”
He said he’s expecting to begin canvassing as soon as the warm weather comes. He wouldn’t yet reveal which wards, or which incumbents, the group plans to target.
The first day for candidates to file their paperwork to run for city council is May 1. The last day is Aug. 21.