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2022 Election Results
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| What We can
Learn from Past Elections |
The results of the 2022 election are shown below. 6,069 votes
were cast for the Mayoralty Race and 5,950 votes for the Deputy Mayor's
race. the
Suntimes reported that 6,230 people voted in the 2022 municipal
election in Owen Sound.
Deputy Mayor - Do we need a separate race?
This suggests that 161 voters chose not to vote for either candidate in
the mayor's race and 280 did not vote for either candidate in the Deputy
Mayor's race. Given this I question whether we should have a separate
race for Deputy Mayor. The downside is that we lost a person who was
willing to participate in the leadership of the community who 2,233
people supported. The position of Deputy Mayor could be filled on a
rotational basis. If we did this it would give all councillors an
opportunity to fill this leadership position and we likely not lose
someone willing to participate in the leadership of the city.
What Does it cost to Run?
Based on the results of the 2022 election it very much looks like it costs
at least $2,000 for a successful run for council. However, the results
of the 2022 election inform us that spending on a campaign is not as
important as you would think. For example, Scott Geig spent $1,728 to
win the seat and Brian O'Leary spent $8,708 and only captured 37.5% of
the vote. The two big spenders for council were Brock Hamley at $7,085
and Marion Koepke who spent $6,238. They each captured 9.8% and 9.3% of
the vote respectively. Yet Jon Farmer spent only $2,022, which was the
least spent by those elected, and he captured 11.9% of the vote which
was the highest support of all candidates running for council.
Carol Merton was a close second in the least spent at $2,099.
Spending is NOT a deciding Factor
The person who spent the least captured the most votes. Obviously Jon
had something else going for him. If you're planning on running and
don't have the means to spend the $6 or $7 thousand that Brock and
Marion spent, I suggest that you speak to Jon or Carol. I'm sure they will share
their election strategies. My guess is that both Jon and
Carol devoted considerable
time door knocking and networking in the community. In fact, my
recollection is that Jon and Carol were the only candidates running for a council
seat that knocked on my door.
Where Did the Money Come From?
Every candidate running for council must complete a financial disclosure
form. You can review these forms at this link:
Financial
Disclosure Forms. These will tell you where candidates received
their financial support. One interesting observation is that some
candidates received financial support from outside of Owen Sound.
Results by the Numbers
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|
Office
Sought |
Funds
Spent |
Votes |
Percent
of Vote |
Cost
per Vote |
|
Ian Boddy |
Mayor |
$6,765 |
3,372 |
55.6% |
$2.01 |
|
Richard Thomas |
Mayor |
$7,841 |
2,697 |
44.4% |
$2.91 |
|
Scott Greig |
Deputy Mayor |
$1,728 |
3,717 |
62.5% |
$0.46 |
|
Brian O'Leary |
Deputy Mayor |
$8,708 |
2,233 |
37.5% |
$3.90 |
|
Jon Farmer |
Councillor |
$2,022 |
3,942 |
12.0% |
$0.51 |
|
Travis Dodd |
Councillor |
$3,815 |
3,888 |
11.9% |
$0.98 |
|
Carol Merton |
Councillor |
$2,099 |
3,534 |
10.8% |
$0.59 |
|
Melanie Middlebro |
Councillor |
$3,443 |
3,443 |
10.5% |
$1.00 |
|
Brock Hamley |
Councillor |
$7,085 |
3,201 |
9.8% |
$2.21 |
|
Marion Koepke |
Councillor |
$6,238 |
3,048 |
9.3% |
$2.05 |
|
Suneet Kukreja |
Councillor |
$2,146 |
2,916 |
8.9% |
$0.74 |
 |
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Meghan Robertson |
Councillor |
$1,997 |
2,723 |
8.3% |
$0.73 |
|
Jeffery Caldwell |
Councillor |
$47 |
1,744 |
5.3% |
$0.03 |
|
Robert Galbraith |
Councillor |
$884 |
1,428 |
4.4% |
$0.62 |
|
Michelle Tompkins |
Councillor |
$0 |
994 |
3.0% |
$0.00 |
|
Jasmine Schnarr |
Councillor |
$0 |
971 |
3.0% |
$0.00 |
|
Alan Douglas |
Councillor |
$0 |
946 |
2.9% |
$0.00 |
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