Andrea Horwath has now officially declared her candidacy for the upcoming Hamilton mayoral race scheduled for October 26. Although previously indicating her plan to seek re-election, Horwath had not completed the necessary paperwork to formalize her candidacy. On Friday, her name was officially added to the list of candidates on the city’s website.
In a news release, Horwath reflected on the challenges faced by the city over the past four years, including issues such as housing shortages, rising living costs, and infrastructure neglect. While acknowledging that not all problems have been resolved, she expressed pride in the progress made so far and promised to share more details about her campaign in the future.
During a news conference on Friday, Horwath highlighted her efforts to advance significant projects that had previously stalled, citing accomplishments such as the Hamilton LRT, Jamesville affordable housing redevelopment, and TD Coliseum. She also acknowledged the need for improvement in cybersecurity following the 2024 cyberattack on city systems, emphasizing the importance of enhancing digital services for residents.
In the last mayoral race, Horwath narrowly secured victory over Keanin Loomis by approximately 1,600 votes. This upcoming election will see a rematch between Horwath and Loomis, alongside other contenders. Notably, since the city’s amalgamation in 2000, only one mayor, Fred Eisenberger, has been re-elected for consecutive terms in 2014 and 2018.
In alphabetical order by last name, the current list of mayoral candidates in Hamilton includes Sasha Austin, Ejaz Butt, Rob Cooper, Paul Fromm, Scarlett Gillespie, Andrea Horwath, Keanin Loomis, Pamela Mitchell, Kevin Walker, and Nathalie Xian Yi Yan. Each candidate brings a unique background and vision for the city, with nominations due by August 21.