Marianne Alto re-elected Victoria mayor as council results bring new faces

Victoria Mayor Marianne Alto has secured a second term following Saturday’s municipal election, defeating challenger Bruce McGuigan in a race involving eight candidates.

With all 58 polls reporting, Alto received 12,627 votes (44.69%), compared to McGuigan’s 9,691 votes (34.30%).

Mike Harris finished third with 3,198 votes (11.32%), followed by Darren Gervais-Harrison with 1,426 votes (5.05%).

Alto’s victory comes four years after she was first elected mayor in 2022, when she defeated former councillor Stephen Andrew.

Before becoming mayor, Alto served on Victoria City Council for more than a decade, having first been elected in a 2010 byelection.

While Alto will remain in the mayor’s chair, Victoria voters have made some changes around the council table. Three newcomers have been elected, while five incumbent councillors will return.

Of the 21 candidates competing for eight council seats, the following were elected:

• Stephen Hammond — 13,729 votes (re-elected)
• Matt Dell — 13,421 votes (re-elected)
• Jeremy Caradonna — 13,257 votes (re-elected)
• Jack Sandor — 12,951 votes (new)
• Marg Gardiner — 12,880 votes (re-elected)
• Melissa Cseszko — 12,720 votes (new)
• Wendy Bowkett — 12,297 votes (new)
• Dave Thompson — 12,266 votes (re-elected)

Hammond topped the council race, while newcomers Sandor, Cseszko and Bowkett secured their first seats at city hall.

Meanwhile, incumbent councillors Susan Kim and Krista Loughton were unsuccessful in their re-election bids.

Loughton came particularly close, finishing ninth with 12,246 votes, just 20 votes behind Dave Thompson, who secured the eighth and final council seat.

Incumbent Chris Coleman did not seek re-election. Victoria voters also elected two school trustees, with Maiya Beech receiving 7,582 votes and Ann Whiteaker securing 6,626 votes.

Voter turnout reached 38.25%, with 28,876 ballots cast among 75,490 eligible voters.

That’s a slight increase from the 37.98% turnout recorded in 2022.

Alto and the newly elected council will now face several major issues over the next four years, including housing affordability, homelessness, public safety, downtown revitalization and municipal spending.

The results remain preliminary until officially confirmed.