Andrea Horwath has officially entered the race for Hamilton’s mayoral position ahead of the municipal election on October 26. While she had previously declared her intention to seek reelection, she had not completed the necessary paperwork to be officially recognized as a candidate. On Friday afternoon, her candidacy was officially confirmed on the city’s website.
In a news release, Horwath acknowledged the significant challenges faced by Hamilton over the past four years, including a housing crisis, escalating living costs, neighborhood pressures, and infrastructure underinvestment. She highlighted the progress made in addressing these issues and expressed her commitment to sharing more about her campaign in the future.
During a news conference on Friday afternoon, Horwath emphasized her pride in advancing key projects that had been stagnant, 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.
Horwath narrowly won the mayoral race in October 2022, defeating Keanin Loomis by approximately 1,600 votes. She is set to face Loomis again in the upcoming election, along with other challengers. Since the city’s amalgamation in 2000, only one mayor, Fred Eisenberger, has been reelected for consecutive terms in 2014 and 2018.
Several candidates have declared their intention to run for mayor in Hamilton. Nomination forms must be submitted by 2 p.m. on August 21. The candidates include Sasha Austin, Ejaz Butt, Rob Cooper, Paul Fromm, Scarlett Gillespie (Jelena Vermilion), Andrea Horwath, Keanin Loomis, Pamela Mitchell, Kevin Walker, and Nathalie Xian Yi Yan. Each candidate brings unique backgrounds and priorities to the mayoral race.