Thirteen Candidates for Seven Council Seats, Six for Mayor — and One for Deputy Mayor in Owen Sound

Five more council candidates have filed in three days, including a third incumbent and a former deputy mayor. Nobody has filed against Deputy Mayor Scott Greig.

Aug 12, 2026

Owen Sound’s council ballot has gone from barely there to crowded in under two weeks. Thirteen candidates are now registered for seven council seats, up from eight on August 9 and seven on August 3.

Six candidates are running for mayor. One is running for deputy mayor.

Nominations close Friday, August 21 at 2 p.m. — nine days out. Candidates may withdraw up to the same deadline.

Five new council candidates in three days

Justin Bianco, Melanie Middlebro’, Brian O’Leary, Jeff Rockwell and David Walton have registered for council since the Current last reported the field on August 9.

They join David Adams, Thomas Arakal, Brock Hamley, Suneet Kukreja, Meghan Robertson, Tamara Sargent, David William Schinbein and Angela Stow.

Thirteen candidates ran for Owen Sound’s seven council seats in 2022. The field has now matched that number nine days before nominations close.

Jaret Koop, who told the Current on August 9 that he had gathered the required signatures was not on the City’s list as of end of day Wednesday.

Who’s an incumbent, who’s been here before and who’s new

Three sitting councillors are seeking re-election to council: Hamley, Kukreja and Middlebro’. Middlebro’ is the newest of the three to file.

Hamley was first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2022 with 3,201 votes, fifth among 13 candidates. Middlebro’ was elected in 2022 with 3,443 votes, fourth. Kukreja was elected in 2022 with 2,916 votes, taking the seventh and final seat.

Two more sitting members of council are on the ballot in other races. Councillor Carol Merton is running for mayor. Deputy Mayor Scott Greig is seeking re-election to his own seat.

That brings five of the nine people on council to the ballot. Mayor Ian Boddy and Councillor Jon Farmer have said publicly they are not seeking re-election. Councillors Travis Dodd and Marion Koepke have not registered.

O’Leary has held office in Owen Sound before. He was elected councillor in 2014, won the deputy mayor’s race in 2018, and lost it to Greig in 2022, taking 2,233 votes to Greig’s 3,717. He is running for a council seat rather than a rematch.

Robertson ran for council in 2022 and finished eighth with 2,723 votes, 193 behind Kukreja and the last seat.

The remaining council candidates — Adams, Arakal, Bianco, Rockwell, Sargent, Schinbein, Stow and Walton — did not appear on the City’s 2022 candidate list.

Adams, Arakal, Robertson and Sargent have posted campaign websites to the City’s list. The others list contact information only.

A sixth mayoral candidate, and still no competition for deputy mayor

Mike Seiler has registered for mayor, joining Ray Botten, Jodi King, Carol Merton, Richard Thomas and Andrii Zvorygin. It is the first change in that race since May.

Merton is the only sitting member of council in the mayoral field. Thomas sat on council from 2014 to 2022 and ran for mayor that year, losing to Boddy. Botten has run for mayor before, including in 2022 and 2018.

Greig remains the only candidate for deputy mayor. If no one files against him by 2 p.m. on August 21, he is acclaimed.

The imbalance is worth noting because of what the deputy mayor’s job carries. Owen Sound sends two people to Grey County Council: the mayor and the deputy mayor. Six candidates are contesting one of those seats. Only one seems interested in the other.

One contested trustee race, and three boards with no takers

Rachael Golem has registered as a candidate for the French-language public board, Conseil scolaire Viamonde, joining Eric Lapointe. Viamonde trustee seats cover large multi-municipality areas, and Lapointe appears on candidate lists across Grey and Bruce.

No one has registered to represent Owen Sound on the Bluewater District School Board, the Bruce-Grey Catholic District School Board or Conseil scolaire catholique Providence.

Where to hear from candidates

The Owen Sound & District Chamber of Commerce has set an all-candidates meeting for Tuesday, October 6 at the Bayshore Community Centre. A second meeting for Georgian Bluffs candidates is set for Thursday, October 8 at the Canadian Reformed Church on Grey Road 18. Start times, the moderator and the question format have not been announced.