One mayor for all of London, with strong-mayor powers over the budget.
Twelve candidates were on the City's nomination register for mayor when nominations closed August 21, 2026; the City certified the final list on August 24. Whoever wins holds Ontario's 'strong mayor' powers: propose the budget alone, veto council amendments, hire and fire the city manager.
Three candidates carry a prior election record. Josh Morgan, the incumbent, was elected mayor in 2022 with 65.7% of the vote over Khalil Ramal's 22.6%, per the City's certified results. Susan Stevenson, the sitting Ward 4 councillor, was elected to that seat in 2022 with 1,064 votes (28.34%) of seven candidates, per the City's certified results. Dan Lenart also ran for mayor in 2022, taking 743 votes (1.05%), per the City's certified results.
The rest of the field, in alphabetical order: John Feher, Lawrence-Zachary Howe, Barry Douglas Jacklin, Tariq Khan, Kirsten Krose, Bronagh Morgan, Christine Rosehart, Jeff Yam, and Mustafa Zeboon.
Listed alphabetically. Identical treatment for every candidate. That's the deal.
Sent out September 3, 2026. Answers are posted here word for word when they arrive. Anything back within a week goes up September 10.
Sent out September 3, 2026. Answers are posted here word for word when they arrive. Anything back within a week goes up September 10.
Sent out September 3, 2026. Answers are posted here word for word when they arrive. Anything back within a week goes up September 10.
Received September 8, 2026
What is the one thing you most want to have changed in London by the end of this term? Tell us what a resident would be able to see in 2030 that shows you did it, and what you would be willing to give up to get it.
“By the end of the term; My Answer is Governance. I will change the culture how city approaches tax payers money. There will be suitable resources of non tax dollars available to city. A culture of accountability at City as well as Councillor level. Have a look at my platform items related to Governance and Neighbourhood first. You will get the answers.”
A councillor is one vote of fifteen, and staff write the reports council votes on. Tell us about a time, in any part of your life, when you needed a decision from people who mostly disagreed with you and got it. Who did you have to bring around, what did you change in your ask, and what did you give up?
“I have worked both inside municipal systems and alongside them. That experience has given me a clear understanding of how the government can operate more efficiently, become more accountable and deliver better results without continually placing additional pressure on taxpayers. In government, everything circles around budgets. This terms will be slightly different as compared with previous terms in municipal governance. Strong Mayor powers further enable Mayors to get the things in public interest if there is undue delay at council's end.”
Name one thing the people you'd represent will ask you for that city council cannot actually decide. Say plainly what you would tell them, who does hold that decision, and what you would do to move it anyway.
“Mental health and homelessness challenge. We will need to work very closely to get some working arrangements done, where senior levels of government funds and City implements.”
Pick the issue you most want to be known for. Where do you feel torn on it, and what is the strongest argument against your own position?
“Governance. London has all the ingredients but lack in Leadership. London is being run like a small town without any vision rather day to day inputs from the staff. At this moment there is total disconnect and trust deficit between neighbourhood & Council. I have first hand knowledge of so many points. Why there are so many people are running for the office this year, is the indirect answer that people are showing their dissatisfaction. I have run mega cities hence I can see where are the gaps and where it could be improved easily and quickly.”
Point us to one thing you have already done for people in London, before this campaign, that a reader could check and that shows how you would do this job. A web address is welcome.
“Its long long list, however very few just for reference. Being Commissioner London Transit, i moved for the Zero emission busses initiative for London transit. We completed everything from feasibility to implementation plan. Federal government was ready to fund as well but then this council came in 2022 and they lost the funding window just because of lack of understanding & vision how such opportunities may be cashed. Integrated Transportation Advisory community helped City staff in drafting Mobility master plan. Being chair of committee, helped staff & committee a lot in drafting their final plan. Cricket grounds for a large community of cricket players. There was no regular cricket ground in London, with the help & support form community members, I mobilized people and resources and convinced city to have grounds for people from common wealth countries. Now London has three cricket grounds and a thriving Cricketing community.”
Sent out September 3, 2026. Answers are posted here word for word when they arrive. Anything back within a week goes up September 10.
Ran for mayor in 2022: 743 votes (1.05%), per the City's certified results.
Sent out September 3, 2026. Answers are posted here word for word when they arrive. Anything back within a week goes up September 10.
Received September 3, 2026
What is the one thing you most want to have changed in London by the end of this term? Tell us what a resident would be able to see in 2030 that shows you did it, and what you would be willing to give up to get it.
“We have too much, disconnected administration, overcomplex and unevenly applied bylaws, reports that are not clear and concise, contracts that do not ensure priorities are accomplished, and policies, plans, and declarations that are meaningless without resources dedicated to them. I help other municipalities, other government departments, other public organizations, and companies across Canada sort these problems out. I will do that for London, and leave after my one and only term (I am committed to never running for mayor again) a City that works better for everyone, no matter who is the mayor. A city-wide organizational review, like what is happening at LHSC and TVDSB, but by a Londoner that Londoners choose, who will do all this in the full view of Londoners.”
A councillor is one vote of fifteen, and staff write the reports council votes on. Tell us about a time, in any part of your life, when you needed a decision from people who mostly disagreed with you and got it. Who did you have to bring around, what did you change in your ask, and what did you give up?
“In 2020, a group of 30-somethings and I convinced a popular Liberal government to change a popular federal law because it was discriminatory. We used the power of social media, my many political contacts, my understanding of the Charter as a then 20-year lawyer, and many compelling stories of separated families to achieve a goal that my own MP at the time said "there was no political appetite for." We changed nothing about our ask… because it was right, and we ultimately helped enough people to understand that so we were able to force the government's hand.”
Name one thing the people you'd represent will ask you for that city council cannot actually decide. Say plainly what you would tell them, who does hold that decision, and what you would do to move it anyway.
“I answered another survey yesterday that had a question about hate and discrimination. We can't stop that. We also can't make people who don't care that people are freezing to death on the streets of London every winter open up space in one or two of the many empty buildings they own to shelter them. Everyone makes a choice, every day, about the kind of human they want to be. We can, however, re-draft our laws and policies and contracts and use the regulatory tools that already exist to make it hard to behave in a hateful way or to ignore human suffering.”
Pick the issue you most want to be known for. Where do you feel torn on it, and what is the strongest argument against your own position?
“The way we have always done things is not the way we have to do things. People have the power to not only understand but to fully participate in government without getting nasty or even reducing big issues into sound bites. Politicians have the ability to make long-term decisions in the best interests of the public. The strongest argument against it is the way we have always done it and the prevailing narrative that this is the way it is. Public servants are failing in their duty to inspire people. Often media members reinforce disempowerment.”
Point us to one thing you have already done for people in London, before this campaign, that a reader could check and that shows how you would do this job. A web address is welcome.
“I led a mural project in the downtown. It's at Dundas and Clarence. I was able to create work for six other artists. I sourced supplies locally. I enlisted the help of random passersby to make suggestions I incorporated. Some even painted a bit. If you look closely, you'll not find my signature. Because that mural is not mine. It's everyone's. It's about London and it's for London. And my name doesn't matter. It's what we created together that matters. https://www.bronaghmorgan.ca/meet-bronagh”
Elected mayor in 2022 with 65.7% of the vote, per the City's certified results.
Sent out September 3, 2026. Answers are posted here word for word when they arrive. Anything back within a week goes up September 10.
Sent out September 3, 2026. Answers are posted here word for word when they arrive. Anything back within a week goes up September 10.
Elected Ward 4 councillor in 2022: 1,064 votes (28.34%) of seven candidates, per the City's certified results.
Received September 26, 2026
What is the one thing you most want to have changed in London by the end of this term? Tell us what a resident would be able to see in 2030 that shows you did it, and what you would be willing to give up to get it.
“I want Londoners to feel that their city is working again — that their neighbourhoods are safe, well maintained and something they can be proud of. By 2030, residents should see cleaner and safer public spaces, better-maintained roads, boulevards and parks, fewer businesses struggling with disorder, and a downtown where people are more confident living, working, shopping and visiting. They should also see consistent enforcement of laws and bylaws alongside better pathways to treatment, recovery, housing and stability for people who need help. To achieve that, I am willing to give up lower-priority spending and projects that do not demonstrate clear results. City Hall cannot treat every program or initiative as equally important. My priority will be the basics Londoners depend on: safety, essential services, well-maintained neighbourhoods and responsible spending. By 2030, people should be able to see and feel the difference.”
A councillor is one vote of fifteen, and staff write the reports council votes on. Tell us about a time, in any part of your life, when you needed a decision from people who mostly disagreed with you and got it. Who did you have to bring around, what did you change in your ask, and what did you give up?
“Recently, Council considered new emergency shelter guidelines that would have permitted possession of illegal drugs in shelters. I disagreed, but I knew I needed eight other Councillors to change the outcome. I listened to concerns about imposing one rule on every shelter and changed my ask. Instead of requiring a city-wide prohibition, I proposed removing the provision permitting illegal drug possession. That left individual shelter operators responsible for their own policies while maintaining the prohibition on drug use in shelters. I gave up getting the uniform rule I preferred in order to achieve the most important result. Council supported my amendment 9–6. That experience reflects how I work. I will take a clear position, listen to colleagues, understand what prevents them from supporting it, and find common ground without abandoning the objective. Leadership is not about winning every part of an argument. It is about getting a workable result.”
Name one thing the people you'd represent will ask you for that city council cannot actually decide. Say plainly what you would tell them, who does hold that decision, and what you would do to move it anyway.
“People regularly ask City Council to provide more addiction treatment. I would tell them plainly: the City can advocate, partner and help create the conditions for services, but Ontario is responsible for healthcare and ultimately controls the treatment system. That does not mean the Mayor should shrug and say it is someone else’s job. London Council unanimously asked the Province in 2023 for a dedicated addiction treatment centre. As Mayor, I would continue pressing the provincial government to deliver the treatment capacity London needs and work with healthcare providers and community partners to identify practical options. I would also use London’s relationship with the Province constructively. The provincial government is in office until 2029. Alignment matters. I want London positioned to secure investment and move projects forward. Residents deserve more than an explanation of which government is responsible. They deserve a Mayor who tells them the truth about who can make the decision, gets that decision-maker to the table, and keeps pushing until London gets the help it needs.”
Pick the issue you most want to be known for. Where do you feel torn on it, and what is the strongest argument against your own position?
“I want to be known for restoring safety and pride in London’s neighbourhoods and public spaces. My position is clear: consistently enforce laws, bylaws and public-space rules; require Good Neighbour Agreements for City-funded homeless and housing services; and push the Province for more addiction treatment and recovery capacity. Where I feel torn is that people causing public disorder may also be struggling with addiction, mental illness or homelessness. They need help, not abandonment. The strongest argument against my position is that enforcement can simply move vulnerable people somewhere else without solving the underlying problem. I agree that enforcement alone is not a solution. But neither is allowing harmful behaviour to continue because someone is struggling. Compassion and accountability have to exist together. I want residents to feel safe using their parks, streets and businesses, while people in crisis have a genuine path to treatment, recovery, housing and stability.”
Point us to one thing you have already done for people in London, before this campaign, that a reader could check and that shows how you would do this job. A web address is welcome.
“During the 2024 Budget Committee meetings on Feb 8 and Feb 15, I recognized that the Legislated Business Case to fund DC Exemptions was not required. With Mayor Morgan’s first strong mayor budget proposing tax increases of 8.8% and 7.3% in 2024 and 2025, I brought forward motions to remove that Business Case (saving taxpayers $21.5M over the 4 years on Feb 8) and then a portion of that Business Case (saving taxpayers $7.2M over the 4 years on Feb 15). Unfortunately, the Council leadership at that time deemed the $21.5M in reserve payments absolutely necessary, even with the extremely high tax increases facing Londoners - until 2025, when it was needed to meet Josh Morgan’s commitment of a tax increase under 5%. The link below on page 273 clearly states that the $21.5M was never required. It was deemed “prudent” by Mayor Morgan in his first strong mayor Multi-Year Budget even with an almost 30% tax increase. That business case also included the ongoing expense of an additional $200K per year in salaries.https://london.ca/sites/default/files/2024-05/2024-2027%20Multi-Year%20Budget.pdf”
Sent out September 3, 2026. Answers are posted here word for word when they arrive. Anything back within a week goes up September 10.
Sent out September 3, 2026. Answers are posted here word for word when they arrive. Anything back within a week goes up September 10.
No endorsements · Same rules for every candidate · Sources linked · Answers published word for word · How we research →
Every citywide file in one place: the situation, the numbers, and what to ask the people who want to run the city.
Homelessness was the single most-cited issue in a May 2026 CBC London reader survey (330+ responses, not a scientific poll). The city's plan, the Whole of Community System Response, has opened two 24/7 low-barrier hubs since 2023, out of an original goal of up to 15. More are planned.
Two hubs open (Atlohsa's Wiigiwaaminaan Lodge and the YOU Community Youth Hub), plus a provincially run HART hub that opened in late October 2025 with 33 beds, building toward 60 plus 60 supportive housing units in its first year, and its 33 new beds were all spoken for within two months. Most of the money is not on the tax bill: it runs through the ~$37.6M donor-funded Fund for Change, provincial Homelessness Prevention Program dollars, and federal transfers, money that is hard for voters to track through the normal budget. Council controls hub siting, zoning, and encampment protocols; addiction treatment, mental health, and income supports sit with the province and Ottawa. City of London — Whole of Community System Response ↗
How many of the planned hubs will actually be open before the next budget, and what happens when the one-time money runs out?
Open drug use and general safety ranked right behind homelessness in the May 2026 CBC survey, especially downtown and in Old East Village. It's tangled up with addiction treatment and health policy, but those sit with the province.
Council controls the policing budget and priorities, by-law enforcement, lighting and public-space design, and outreach-program funding. It does not control drug scheduling and enforcement law (federal), addiction treatment and supervised consumption policy (provincial), or Crown prosecution decisions. CBC London reader survey, May 2026 ↗
Do you support the current police-budget trajectory, and if not, what would you fund instead?
Council approved a $672 million, four-year police budget in February 2024, roughly 30% more than the prior four-year track. It was the single largest driver of the 2024 property tax increase.
The package includes 189 new positions (97 of them new officers), body cameras, a new digital evidence system, and $42M toward what is now the London Emergency Services Campus, a joint police/fire/city training facility at 3243 Manning Drive (site endorsed by council in July 2025; Phase One runs 2025–2027). The police budget was worth roughly 5 of 2024's 8.7 percentage points of tax increase. Statistics Canada's official measure puts London CMA's Crime Severity Index at 66.0 in 2025, up 8% from 2024 and its first rise since 2021, though still 12% below 2019 (national index: 75.0, down 5%). The split matters: non-violent crime is still 23% below 2019, while violent crime severity (79.6 in 2025) is about 24% above 2019. And neither the earlier decline nor the 2025 rise can be pinned on the new spending, since the hires were still ramping up. StatCan — Crime Severity Index by CMA, 2025 ↗
Based on results so far, was the $672-million police commitment worth it?
As of June 2026, 29.6% of downtown London's office space sits empty, per CBRE. That is down from 31.5% three months earlier, the biggest three month drop of any downtown in Canada, and it is still nearly 3 in 10 offices. Through March 2026 this was the emptiest downtown in the country; it no longer is, with Waterloo Region's downtown now just above at 30.0%. Most of the empty space is in older Class B/C buildings, and WSIB moving out of the core was a big part of how it got this high.
The city's office-to-residential conversion incentive (a forgivable loan of up to $35,000 per unit, stackable to about $50,000 with a separate affordable-housing incentive) has funded conversions including 685 Richmond St (41 units) and the former Rexall building at 166 Dundas. Whether the subsidy model is working is genuinely contested: vacancy rose through 2025 despite it, and the turn in the spring of 2026 has not been traced to the program. Careful with which number you are handed, too: the 25.0% figure that ran in some coverage is the whole city including suburban offices, not downtown. Council controls zoning, CIP incentive design, and spending on streets and public spaces; it does not control private employers' return-to-office decisions. CBRE, London Office Figures Q2 2026 ↗
Should the office-conversion subsidy continue, change, or be capped? What vacancy number, by what date, counts as success?
London's tax increases ran hot, then cooled: 8.7% (2024), 7.3% (2025), a proposed 3.6% for 2026 that a committee amendment trimmed to 3.4%, which stood (no veto; per CTV News, Nov. 26, 2025), and a planned 4.7% (2027), a four-year average of 6.0%. The 2024 spike was driven mainly by the police budget; later numbers came down after the mayor told staff to hold future increases under 5%.
Per the 2025 BMA Municipal Study, the tax on BMA's model two-storey home in London is $5,760 (seventh-lowest of 33 entries in its over-100,000 table; BMA's average residential tax for London is $4,056) while London's levy per $100,000 of assessment ranks high, because London's assessment base is comparatively small (average dwelling value about $242,000 at frozen 2016 values). Both are true at once: a below-average bill at an above-average rate, and BMA publishes no single combined 'cheap or expensive' ranking. A large share of 'social' spending is also provincially mandated and cost-shared (Ontario Works, childcare, public health), not a discretionary local choice. BMA Municipal Study 2025 (PDF) ↗
Name one budget line you would actually cut or grow, not just 'hold the line.'
London's rent story runs on two tracks. The city's own Q4 2024 snapshot put the average one-bedroom at $1,765 a month, and CMHC's 2025 report put purpose-built rental vacancy at 4%, the highest since 2010. Asking and occupied rents differ: the average occupied two-bedroom was $1,636 in October 2025 (CMHC), while asking rents for a two-bedroom ran around $2,099 in September 2026 (Zumper). A household earning the census median income (about $79,500 for the London metro area) can qualify for a mortgage that covers a benchmark condo but not a house. Average home prices have been roughly flat through 2026 after several years of high increases.
The federal Housing Accelerator Fund ($74M as signed, later amended to up to $81.5M for 2,371 additional units between 2024 and 2026) anchors the city's supply push, alongside the office-conversion program. Council controls zoning and approvals speed, development charges, and incentive programs; it does not control mortgage rates and lending rules (federal/Bank of Canada), income growth, or most direct housing subsidy programs. City of London — Q4 2024 rental market snapshot ↗
Do you support duplexes and fourplexes in established neighbourhoods, yes or no?
London's BRT was cut back, then got more expensive. Council cancelled the north ($147M) and west ($72M) legs of the original five-corridor plan in 2019; the Downtown Loop was finished in 2024, and two corridors are still under construction (East London Link and Wellington Gateway). Cost overruns and construction disruption have been steady complaints.
The network's approved budget is now $454 million, up from the $280.5M council approved in 2019; about $176M of that comes from the province and Ottawa. The East London Link's final phase, on Dundas Street, began March 16, 2026 and the city expects it to run to about 2028 (City of London Phase 5 notice); Wellington Gateway construction continues through 2029, with final restoration work into 2030. Council controls route design, funding priority, and disruption management; it does not control the pace of provincial and federal transit funding, which BRT depends on. Rapid Transit (London, Ontario) — Wikipedia ↗
Should the cancelled north and west BRT legs be revived, and with whose money?
The London metro area counted 543,551 people in the 2021 Census and kept growing fast: up 3.2% from July 2023 to July 2024, ahead of the national 3.0%, before growth slowed sharply to about 1.0% in 2024–25 as the number of non-permanent residents fell. That growth strains roads, water and wastewater systems, and everyday services.
Road and infrastructure maintenance was cited alongside homelessness and drug use as a top-three concern in the May 2026 CBC survey. Water and wastewater have their own capital plans worth hundreds of millions, paid through water rates rather than property tax. Council controls the capital plan, road reconstruction priorities, and how growth costs are split between existing taxpayers (levy) and new development (development charges); it does not control provincial highway funding or the growth policy driving population increases. CBC London reader survey, May 2026 ↗
Who should pay for the roads and sewers growth requires: new development or existing homeowners?
The ballot is one tool, not the only one. Between elections, the people who show up are the ones who get heard, and you can start today, not next fall.
None of it waits four years. The people already in the room are the ones who asked to be.
Everyone in London votes for mayor, and it’s decided by whoever turns out. In a low-turnout election that’s a smaller group than you’d think, so your vote weighs more, not less. You’ve got the whole race. The rest is October 26.
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