The voters of Chatham-Kent (CK) have decided it's time for change at the top.
With all of the votes counted, Michael Bondy has been declared the winner of the mayoral race in CK.
Bondy secured 15,818 votes, compared to incumbent Darrin Canniff's 11,501.
Lauren Anderson landed third place with 4,983 votes, followed by Randy Hope with 2,818, April Colby with 570, Nelson Burm with 469, and Ryan Gow with 251.
Bondy said there will be change at city hall in the future such as restructuring and streamlining the budget.
"Not layoffs I don't think. Cuts yeah, if there are inefficiencies, redundencies, duplications, then yeah, sure. But those cuts won't hurt people and that's what has not been looked at," Bondy said.
Bondy credits a clean campaign, no mud slinging, and listening to the community for his convincing win.
"I expected it to be a little rough, but not what I experienced or what my kids experienced over the last three months. I felt it was inappropriate, unnecessary and I was disappointed by it," said the mayor-elect.
Bondy also said the public lost trust in local government and wanted change.
He said he expected a closer race and thanks Mayor Canniff for calling to congratulate him.
Canniff hosted an election party at the Crow City Brewhouse, with more than fifty people in attendance, including municipal staff.
"Well, certainly I'm disappointed. But I want to make sure that the community rallies with the new council. We have a bright future here, and we just need to proceed on because I think we live in one of the best communities ever," said Canniff.
He added that misinformation made it a divisive election, but he is optimistic that the "community will rally and come together."
"We got a great community. Make sure that we tap into all the resources and partnerships that we have," Canniff explained when asked if he had any advice for new mayor Bondy.
There will be plenty of change on council, from the composition to the faces.
Ward 1 (South West Kent) will see Mark Authier and Melissa Harrigan as representatives. They earned 2,998 and 1,653 votes respectively.
Ward 2 (South East Kent) will be led by Anthony Ceccacci (3,190 votes) and Albert Pilbeam (2,802 votes).
Ward 3 (North East Kent) saw Emery Huszka win in a landslide. Huszka had almost 700 more votes than his closest competitor.
It was a nail-biter in Ward 4 (North West Kent). Rhonda Jubenville will have a second term as councillor after getting 1,436 votes. John Cummings finished with 1,287 votes.
Wallaceburg's Ward 5 will see Jim Blake (1,467 votes) and Bill Wolsing (959 votes) as representatives.
Ward 6 (North West Chatham) saw Alysson Storey retain her seat with 2,606 votes. She'll be joined by F. Brian Machado, who got 1,964 votes.
Ward 7 (North East Chatham) will be represented by Steve Kenney (2,318 votes) and Amy Finn (1,551 votes).
Ward 8 (South Chatham) may be a new ward, but it will see familiar faces as representatives. Brock McGregor (2,594 votes) and Conor Allin (2,413 votes) will serve another term on council.
