SYDNEY, N.S. — And they’re off.
The deadline for filing nomination papers for the upcoming municipal elections was met at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, but not before almost 100 candidates had officially entered the race for political office across Cape Breton’s five jurisdictions.
About half of the candidates running for elected office are in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, which with more than 80,000 eligible voters spread over 12 districts is by far the largest of the island’s political entities.
The race for CBRM mayor now includes six challengers looking to unseat two-term incumbent Cecil Clarke. They are District 8 councillor Amanda McDougall, Sydney businessman Kevin MacEachern, 1990 Sydney mayoral candidate Chris Abbass, former Sydney Steel president John Strasser, Little Bras d’Or’s Archie MacKinnon, who contested the Sydney-Victoria electoral district in the 2019 federal election and Gordon MacPherson.
CBRM council will see at least a 50 per cent turnover as half of the 12 councillors elected in the 2016 vote are not seeking re-election.
Veterans Clarence Prince, Jim MacLeod and George MacDonald are all retiring from the political arena, while Kendra Coombes won a provincial byelection earlier this year and is now the MLA for Cape Breton Centre. Ray Paruch passed away in April and McDougall is seeking the mayor’s chair. A total of 49 candidates are running in the 12 districts, all of which are being contested.
Cape Breton Regional Municipality
Mayoral candidates
*indicates incumbent
Chris Abbass
*Cecil Clarke
Kevin MacEachern
Archie MacKinnon
Gordon MacPherson
Amanda McDougall
John Strasser
District 1
Andrew Doyle
Danny Laffin
Gordon MacDonald
Daniel (Duke) Pero
Shara Vickers
District 2
Jim Dunphy
*Earlene MacMullin
District 3
Cyril MacDonald
*Esmond (Blue) Marshall
Glen Murrant
John Whalley
District 4
*Steve Gillespie
Yianni Harbis
Donalda Johnston
District 5
Christina Joe
Nigel Kearns
Shawn Lesnick
*Eldon MacDonald
Scott MacQuarrie
District 6
Barbara Beaton
Keith MacDonald
Glenn Paruch
Todd Riley
Joe Ward
District 7
*Ivan Doncaster
Kevin Hardy
Steve Parsons
Adam Young
District 8
James Edwards
Tracey Hilliard
Diana MacKinnon-Furlong
District 9
Steven James MacNeil
Clarence Routledge
Kenny Tracey
District 10
Matthew Boyd
*Darren Bruckschwaiger
District 11
Dale Cadden
Jennifer Heffernan
Jeff MacNeil
Johnny Miles
Arnie Nason
Chuck Ogley
Darren O’Quinn
Laura Scheller Stanford
District 12
Trevor Allen
Gary Borden
Donald Campbell
Lorne Green
Kim Sheppard
In Port Hawkesbury, incumbent mayor Brenda Chisholm-Beaton appeared to be headed for an acclamation but it’s now a two-person race after Archie MacLachlan threw his hat into the ring on nomination day on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, seven candidates, including three of the four incumbents, are in the race to sit on the town council. They are voted at large across the community.
Port Hawkesbury
Mayor
*Brenda Chisholm-Beaton
Archie MacLachlan
Councillors (four are elected at large)
Jason Aucoin
Pamela Hart
*Hughie MacDougall
*Mark MacIver
*Blaine MacQuarrie
John Ouellette
Michele Tabensky
In Richmond County, four of the five incumbents are seeking re-election while all of the districts will be contested. Thirteen candidates are running for council.
In Victoria, a total of 14 candidates are on the ballot for the large rural municipality’s eight council seats. However, four of the districts have just one candidate, including Warden Bruce Morrison in District 3. Councillors Paul MacNeil, Fraser Patterson and Larry Dauphinee do not have any challengers and will be acclaimed their areas' next representatives.
The list of candidates in Inverness County numbers 15 with seven being women.
Richmond County
District 1
Brandon Boudreau
*James Goyetche
Rod Samson
Shawn Samson
District 2
Gerry Bourque
Carolyn Clackdoyle
Michael Diggdon
District 3
*Brian Marchand
Melanie Sampson
District 4
*Gilbert Boucher
Amanda Mombourquette
District 5
*Jason MacLean
Brent Sampson
Victoria County
District 1
*Paul M MacNeil
District 2
*Perla MacLeod
Norman Matheson
District 3
*Bruce J Morrison
District 4
Rosella Born
Barbara Longva
District 5
*Fraser Patterson
District 6
*Larry Dauphinee
District 7
Jeffrey Gwynn
Jackie Organ
Lawrence Seymore
Kim Stockley
District 8
John Buchanan
*Norman MacDonald
Inverness County
District 1
*Alfred Poirier
District 2
*Laurie Cranton
District 3
Larry Lariviere
Bonny MacIsaac
*Jim Mustard
Gerald M. Poirier
District 4
Jason Bernard
*John MacLennan
Christine Dowling
District 5
Lynn Chisholm
*Betty Ann MacQuarrie (Warden)
Thom Oommen
District 6
*John Dowling
Gerard Gillis
Mary Jess MacDonald
Catherine L. Gillis
The Municipality of Richmond County is one of the island’s five jurisdictions that is holding a traditional paper-ballot, polling station kind of election. All the other four are all utilizing electronic voting that will be operational on a 24/7 basis in the week leading up to the election
Election day is Oct. 17.
