It came down to the wire for some candidates entering the Oct. 27 municipal election race.
Nominations for mayor, city councillor and school board trustee closed at 2 p.m. Friday.
A record 124 people have registered to run for one of the 23 seats on city council, while another seven people are challenging incumbent Jim Watson for the mayor’s job.
Rebecca Pyrah and Michael St. Arnaud were the final contestants to join that race.
There are open races in six seats following the departures of councillors Rainer Bloess (Innes), Steve Desroches (Gloucester-South Nepean), Diane Holmes (Somerset), Peter Hume (Alta Vista), Maria McRae (River) and Doug Thompson (Osgoode).
Not surprising, many of those empty seat races have attracted the highest number of candidates, with 11 people registered in Somerset and Osgoode, 10 in River and nine each in Alta Vista and Innes.
The remaining 17 incumbents are all facing challengers.
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The clerk’s desk at Ottawa city hall was buzzing with activity over the lunch hour Friday, as several candidates rushed to file their papers.
Riley Brockington, a former Ottawa-Carleton District School Board trustee, only secured the permission he needed to run earlier that morning. As a federal public servant, he was required to clear his candidacy first before formally entering the race.
Brockington is running in River ward, which has been held since 2003 by Maria McRae. McRae, who chaired the environment committee, announced last week that she would not seek a fourth term.
Brockington, 38, joins a crowded field, as seven others are vying to replace McRae.
He pledged to focus on community safety, see the light rail transit project through and make sure development plans are consistent with the community’s look and feel.
Another sign that election season is upon us came earlier in the day when Jim Watson planted his first sign on the lawn of philanthropist Dave Smith. Signs aren’t allowed on public property until Sept. 27.
By the numbers
124 Candidates for Ottawa city council
8 Candidates for mayor
0 Incumbents acclaimed. It looked like Allan Hubley in Kanata South would be acclaimed but Bruce Faulkner, who had been registered to run in Osgoode, switched wards on Friday.
11 Candidates registered to run in Somerset and Osgoode wards. These races have the most candidates.
1 Former city councillor seeking a comeback. Bay ward candidate Alex Cullen ran for mayor in 2010, but dropped out of that race and entered the race in his own ward, ultimately losing to Mark Taylor. He had previously been the Bay ward councillor from 2001 to 2010.
5 Candidates whose first name is either Marc or Mark. There are also candidates named Jonathan Mark and George Marko.
22 Candidates who are women. That’s two more than in 2010, but still less than 20 per cent.
Voters head to the polls on Oct. 27. For all your Citizen coverage of the municipal election, check out ottawacitizen.com/tag/ottawa-votes
mpearson@ottawacitizen.com
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