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Voters have elected new mayors in a number of eastern Ontario communities, including Kingston, where a close race ended in victory for Conny Glenn, according to Monday’s unofficial results.
Glenn, a councillor for the city, defeated incumbent Bryan Paterson with 16,451 votes compared to his 15,658, once all the polls had reported.
Paterson has served as mayor for three terms while Glenn has represented District 10 (Syndenham).
The city’s certified results are expected to be posted Tuesday.
Voters have also elected new mayors in Belleville, Brockville, Perth and the Township of Rideau Lakes.
Like Kingston, Belleville also saw an incumbent mayor defeated by another candidate. Current mayor Neil Ellis was bested by newcomer Paul Fleming.
In Perth, incumbent Judy Brown decided not to run again as mayor, choosing instead to compete for one of five seats on councillor but failing in her bid.
The community has elected Deputy Mayor Ed McPherson as its new mayor.
Mayors’ exits pave way for new leaders
In Brockville, Mayor Matt Wren also decided not to serve another term. Coun. Cameron Wales will replace him after Monday’s election.
“I just want to say how grateful I am for the confidence of residents in the city, and even more so for the time that residents took with me at the doors,” he told CBC News.
The Township of Rideau Lakes was notable for ushering in an almost entirely new council on Monday.
The council’s current term has been riven with infighting, with three members suing all but one of their council colleagues over alleged abuses of their public positions.
The only one not involved in that lawsuit, Dustin Bulloch, was the lone councillor to be re-elected Monday.
John Fenik, a former mayor of Perth, was elected mayor of the Township of Rideau Lakes on Monday night, according to unofficial results. (Ashley Burke/CBC)
John Fenik, a former mayor of Perth, was elected mayor of Rideau Lakes. He said he’s looking forward to forging a positive new path in the community.
Fenik added that he does not plan to use the controversial strong mayor powers now available to municipal leaders. The use of that tool by outgoing mayor Arie Hoogenboom, who decided not to run again, proved divisive among councillors.
“It undermines democracy,” Fenik said of strong mayor powers on Monday, moments after being elected. “The council is made up of people, and the democratic process is that the majority vote carries the day. So I will never, ever use strong mayor powers.”
New mayors also came to power in Cornwall and Pembroke.
Good defeats Towndale in Cornwall
In Cornwall, Sarah Good held a strong lead over incumbent Justin Towndale before the city released its unofficial results declaring Good mayor.
Pembroke saw Stephanie LeMay elected over incumbent Ron Gervais.
And in Quinte West, where outgoing mayor Jim Harrison did not seek an additional term, Zack Card drew an ace over the two other candidates vying for the top seat.
Sarah Good is the new mayor of Cornwall, defeating incumbent Justin Towndale according to the city’s preliminary election results. (Sarah Good/Facebook)
