Updated: 9 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 23:
Karen Redman, a former Waterloo Region councillor, former Liberal MP and former CEO of Habitat for Humanity Waterloo Region, has been elected chair of the Region of Waterloo.
She will succeed Ken Seiling who has held the chair’s position for 33 years.
“I am pleased to see Karen Redman elected to chair and am confident she will provide solid leadership, engage the community and serve with a caring responsible government,” said Ken Seiling, the outgoing regional chair, in a statement.
The Region of Waterloo’s council is composed of eight directly elected regional councillors and the mayors of the seven local municipalities: the cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo and the townships of North Dumfries, Wellesley, Wilmot and Woolwich.
On Monday, a server malfunction with internet and phone voting systems caused the municipalities to keep polls open longer. The malfunction affected Cambridge, Woolwich and Wellesley. The voting malfunction left some results up in the air as the townships polls were extended for another 24 hours.
Mayor of Cambridge: Kathryn McGarry- 13,404 votes 47.72%
Kathryn McGarry won the Cambridge mayoral race with 13,404 votes., while incumbent Doug Craig followed with 7,394 votes.
McGarry, having served as the MPP of Cambridge for four years, has a thorough understanding of the needs of the city of Cambridge. She hopes to foster a bright and prosperous future for Cambridge with a collaborative leadership approach.
McGarry focused much of her campaign around the growing opioid crisis in the region and she hopes to make the streets of Cambridge a cleaner place. She also plans to ensure jobs for Cambridge residents, work on the transit system, expand community services and also has plans for more affordable housing.
Elected Cambridge city councillors:
Ward 1: Donna Reid- 33.40% of the vote
Ward 2: Mike Devine- 57.87%
Ward 3: Mike Mann- 52.79%
Ward 4: Jan Liggett- 59.71%
Ward 5: Pam Wolf- 57.23%
Ward 6: Shannon Adshade- 39.56%
Ward 7: Frank Monteiro- 47.12%
Ward 8: Nicholas Ermeta- 64.81%
Mayor of Kitchener: Berry Vrbanovic- 34,983 votes, 85.47% of the vote.
According to unofficial results posted on the city’s website, Vrbanovic won his re-election with 85 per cent of the vote.
Vrbanovic was first elected Kitchener mayor in 2014 and, with his re-election, he has big plans for the city of Kitchener.
As he has for the past four years, Vrbanovic plans to continue his work in ensuring strong neighbourhoods in Kitchener. He hopes to see an expansion in the city’s Neighbourhood Action Plan, he plans to create micro-dog parks around the city and update the city’s leisure facility master plan.
He also hopes to make transportation for cyclists, pedestrians and drivers safer, develop a comprehensive communication and community engagement strategy and work on ways to grow the Kitchener economy.
Elected Kitchener city councillors:
Ward 1: Scott Davey- 61.73%
Ward 2: Dave Schnider- 59.67%
Ward 3: John Gazzola- 66.08%
Ward 4: Christine Michaud- 39.24%
Ward 5: Kelly Galloway-Sealock- 65.91%
Ward 6: Paul Singh- 80.71%
Ward 7: Bil Ioannidis- 52.44%
Ward 8: Margaret Johnston- 49.24%
Ward 9: Debbie Chapman- 52.15%
Ward 10: Sarah Marsh- 76.39%
Mayor of Waterloo: Dave Jaworsky, approx. 71% of the vote.
Vrbanovic is not the only one to be re-elected as mayor during this election; Jaworsky will also be entering his second term as the mayor of Waterloo.
Jaworsky has spent the past four years working diligently to make Waterloo a vibrant and caring community and plans to continue to grow the community over the next four years.
After being elected in 2014, Jaworsky implemented a four-point economic development plan – Keep, Grow, Start and Attract. Keep existing companies, grow established businesses, start new entrepreneurial ventures and attract investments — a system he plans to continue in this term.
Jaworsky also plans to foster arts and culture, promote public places such as libraries and Waterloo Park, and he also plans to work on finding a solution to the affordable housing crisis.
Elected Waterloo city councillors:
Ward 1: Sandra Hanmer
Ward 2: Royce Bodaly
Ward 3: Angela Veith
Ward 4: Diane Lynn Freeman
Ward 5: Jen Vasic
Ward 6: Jeff Henry
Ward 7: Tenille Bonoguore
Elected regional councillors:
City of Cambridge: Karl Kiefer, Helen Jowett
City of Kitchener: Tom Galloway, Elizabeth Clarke, Michael D. Harris, Jeff Lorentz
City of Waterloo: Jim Erb, Sean Strickland
Mayors: Berry Vrbanovic (Kitchener), Dave Jaworsky (Waterloo), Kathryn McGarry (Cambridge), Les Armstrong (Wilmot Township), Sandy Shantz (Woolwich Township), Sue Foxton (North Dumfries) and Joe Nowak (Wellesley Township)
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