A night of change in Windsor-Essex as many new faces take over the mayor’s seat in several municipalities.
Polls officially closed for the municipal election at 8 p.m. on Monday and results soon followed.
There are new mayors in Windsor, LaSalle, Tecumseh, Chatham-Kent, Kingsville, Amherstburg and Pelee Island.
Essex, Leamington and Lakeshore all re-elected their mayors.
Unofficial results:
Fred Francis has won the mayor’s race in Windsor according to unofficial results, ending a 12-year reign for Drew Dilkens, in Monday’s municipal election.
Francis was first elected to councillor as the Ward 1 representative in 2014 and was re-elected twice in the subsequent elections in 2018 and 2022.
Joe Bachetti has won the mayor’s race in Tecumseh according to unofficial election results, ousting longtime mayor Gary McNamara.
Voters chose for change in electing the former deputy mayor to the head of council and ending McNamara’s 35 years in municipal office.
Voters in Essex have backed Sherry Bondy for another term as mayor in the town, according to unofficial election results.
Bondy took on challenger Trevor Menard in the mayoral race, looking to be re-elected after first securing the office in the 2022 election.
A razor thin margin has seen Michael Macri elected as mayor in LaSalle, according to unofficial results.
Macri won with 5,051 votes while Meloche trailed close behind with 5,016 and fellow mayoral challenger Shaun Dass finished with 3,197.
Voters in Lakeshore have returned Tracey Bailey to the mayor’s office, according to unofficial results.
Bailey campaigned on her 12 years of combined council experience serving as a councillor, deputy mayor, and mayor in her bid for re-election.
Amherstburg has voted for change by electing Chris Gibb mayor, according to unofficial results.
On Monday, Gibb was backed by 3,928 votes to top fellow candidates Bill Fryer at 3,284 and Michael Prue, seeking re-election, at 1,704.
Change has come to Kingsville where voters have opted for newcomer Mary Ellen Havlik over re-electing former mayor Dennis Rogers, according to unofficial results.
Havlik took 2,667 votes to top Dennis Rogers, who won 2,323 votes in his re-election bid.
Voters in Leamington have returned Hilda MacDonald to the mayor’s chair for a third term, according to unofficial election results.
MacDonald stood against challenger Cris Biron in the mayor’s race and edged out a victory with 3,365 votes to Biron’s 2,985.
Township of Pelee voters have elected David DeLellis as the island’s new mayor, replacing Cathy Miller, who did not run, according to unofficial election results.
On Monday, DeLellis fended off challenger Jaak Purres with a vote count of 213 to 89.
A wave of change washing over southwestern Ontario has come to Chatham-Kent where voters have turned to Michael Bondy as the community’s next mayor, according to unofficial results.
On Monday, Darrin Canniff lost his re-election bid to Bondy, with the unofficial count showing 15,818 votes for Bondy and Canniff finishing behind with 11,501 votes.
CTV News Windsor is posted live election results here as they came in. Here’s how the night unfolded: