Ottawa city council to feature 8 new councillors
CBC News | Posted: October 28, 2014 2:56 AM | Last Updated: October 28, 2014
Katherine Hobbs, Peter Clark lose seats in Kitchissippi and Rideau-Rockcliffe
There will be eight new faces at the city council table to work with Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson, as two sitting councillors were defeated and six councillors did not seek re-election.
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In 2010, there were 10 new councillors elected to council to join Jim Watson, who was elected as mayor over Larry O'Brien.
This year, there was a similar turnover. Here’s what happened in 11 ridings that featured tight races or new faces.
River
Maria McRae chose not to run for re-election, creating an open race of 10 candidates vying for her council seat. McRae backed Riley Brockington and he will be elected, the CBC Decision Desk says.
Vanessa Nicki Sutton and Mike Patton were the next runners-up.
Bay
Mark Taylor sought re-election in Bay Ward, but he faced the man he defeated in 2010 — Alex Cullen.
This race was the final one to be determined as Taylor had about 47 per cent of the vote compared to 43 per cent for Cullen with 97.5 per cent of the polls counted.
Rideau-Vanier
Mathieu Fleury won the Rideau-Vanier council seat in 2010. In 2014, he faced a serious challenger in Marc Aubin, but Fleury prevailed, according to the CBC Decision Desk.
Rideau-Rockcliffe
Veteran local politician Peter Clark sought re-election but a few local residents decided to challenge that notion. Tobi Nussbaum, a local public servant, will be elected, according to the CBC Decision Desk.
Kanata North
At 76, Marianne Wilkinson sought re-election in Kanata North facing two competitors. She faced a tough test from Matt Muirhead, but will prevail, says the CBC Decision Desk.
Osgoode
Veteran municipal politician, Doug Thompson, left city council leaving an open seat for 11 candidates to battle. Many candidates garnered more than 10 per cent of the vote but George Darouze won with about 21 per cent of the vote, the CBC Decision Desk projects.
Somerset
Diane Holmes left her seat and 11 candidates put their names forward.
The CBC Decision Desk projects Catherine McKenney, 52, will be the next councillor after leaving her job as a senior advisor to deputy city manager Steve Kanellakos.
McKenney also used to work for Holmes and says she wants to continue the work already finished by the outgoing councillor.
Martin Canning and Jeff Morrison were the nearest runner-ups and each garnered similar numbers.
Kitchissippi
Incumbent Katherine Hobbs faced some criticism for her relationship with developers, and some opposition from active community members like Jeff Leiper.
That showed in the polls as the CBC Decision Desk says Leiper will upset Hobbs.
Innes
Rainer Bloess left his seat at city council and nine candidates vied for his spot, including Afghanistan veteran Jody Mitic and former PC candidate Fred Sherwin. Mitic prevailed with Laura Dudas placing second, the CBC Decision Desk says.
Gloucester-South Nepean
Steve Desroches, a long-time friend of the mayor, decided to leave municipal politics and seven candidates put their names forward, including Ottawa Sun city hall columnist Sue Sherring and Desroches’s former communications head, Michael Qaqish.
Qaqish will take the seat ahead of Sherring, the CBC Decision Desk says.
Alta Vista
Peter Hume departed leaving nine candidates to fight for his seat. Jean Cloutier, who Hume endorsed, won Hume's old seat.
Clinton Cowan placed second.
Corrections:- An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported Jean Cloutier was a former staffer for Peter Hume. October 28, 2014 9:11 PM