UPDATE: Former Orléans Star editor Catherine Kitts named city councillor for Cumberland
Posted Oct 6, 2020 12:11:00 PM.
UPDATE: The City of Ottawa declared the election results official at 4 p.m., Tuesday, October 6.
The votes are in for the Cumberland by-election, and Catherine Kitts is the ward's new city councillor.
The communications specialist and former editor of the Orléans Star won the ward with more than half of the ballots cast, and nearly double the number of votes as her closest competitor.
This was the first election in Ottawa during the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced candidates to wear face masks as they campaigned door-to-door.
Kitts campaigned with the support of the ward's previous councillor Stephen Blais, who resigned to run for the area's provincial seat.
Voter turnout for the Cumberland Ward by-election was just 24 per cent.
Thank you #Cumberland Merci #Cumberland So grateful for all the support.
Je suis tellement reconnaissant pour le soutien #Cumberland
— Catherine Kitts (@catherinekitts) October 6, 2020
Congratulations to councillor – elect @catherinekitts on a decisive election win tonight in Cumberland ward. You ran an excellent and positive campaign and I know you will be a strong voice for your residents. Thanks also to the candidates who stood for election
— Jim Watson (@JimWatsonOttawa) October 6, 2020
