LIVE: ONT. Municipal Votes 2026: What Should We Be Watching?
Updated: 2 hours ago
Good morning, and welcome to Municipal Affairs.
The 2026 Ontario Municipal Election is just around the corner, with 444 municipalities in Ontario, and only 414 of them with contests races — candidates are knocking on doors, glad-handing with voters at the local coffee shop, and hammering lawn signs into the ground before that first winter freeze sets in.
And today, we're putting politics front and centre on the show.
We're going to dive into the acclamations, the state of the races, the municipalities where voters won't even have a choice because no one put their name forward for the job, and where you — our listeners and voters — should be watching as we get closer to that all-important election day: Monday, October 26th.
Now, you might be thinking, Chris, with 444 municipalities, where do I even start?
Why should I care about what's happening in a municipality on the other side of the province?
Why should it matter what issues are being debated in my local ward, or around my municipal council table?
Well, because — just like our mission here on Municipal Affairs — everything is local, and everything comes down to local government.
Your water services. Your roads. The snow clearing we all complain about. The garbage getting picked up on trash day. The bridge farmers drive across every day to get their crops to market. The fire service that needs to get to your home quickly when you need it most.
These are the day-to-day things we don't often think about — until something goes wrong.
And they're all on the line in this election.
Joining me to dive into the 2026 Municipal Election in Ontario, I'm glad to be back at it with Ian McCormack, President of Strategic Steps Inc. and co-host of Political Trenches on the Cross Border Network.
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