After the Oct. 3 deadline for municipal candidates to declare their intentions has passed, a total of 14 mayors in the greater Montreal area, such as those in Kirkland and Dollard-des-Ormeaux, have secured their positions uncontested. This trend, while common in smaller communities, is now on the rise in the greater Montreal region, as indicated by data from Radio-Canada.
For instance, in Terrebonne, Quebec, Mathieu Traversy was re-elected uncontested, having faced two opponents in the previous election. Similarly, in Châteauguay, Quebec, Éric Allard will continue his role as mayor without opposition this year, unlike in the previous municipal election where he competed against two other candidates.
Furthermore, all 10 city council candidates from Allard’s party have also been elected unopposed, leading to the cancellation of municipal elections in Châteauguay on Nov. 2. Similarly, mayors in Kirkland, Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Saint-Eustache, and Boucherville have been re-elected without any challengers.
In the Quebec City outskirts, approximately 87 mayors are running unopposed. However, in the Chaudières-Appalaches region south of Quebec City, four municipalities, including Saint-Benjamin, Saint-Cyrille-de-Lessard, Lac-Frontière, and Saint-Philibert, have no mayoral candidates on the ballot.
According to Élections Québec, a new election must be organized within four months if a mayor’s seat remains vacant. Should no candidates come forward at that point, the municipal affairs minister would step in to decide whether to hold another election or implement an alternative solution.
In the previous year, 615 mayors in Quebec ran unopposed, and 11 municipalities were left without a mayor.