East London: Argyle · Hale–Highbury · former Psychiatric Hospital lands
Ward 2 is a four-candidate race. Nominations closed August 21, 2026; the City certified the list on August 24. The race is about who manages a fast-changing east end, headlined by roughly 8,400 homes planned for the old psychiatric hospital lands and a final phase of East London Link construction on Dundas Street that the city expects to run to about 2028. Ward 2 now takes in all of Argyle, while Old East Village goes to Ward 1, and the ward's boundaries were redrawn for this election, so parts of the new Ward 2 have not previously voted in this seat's races.
Two candidates carry a prior election record. Alexandria Hames ran for Ward 13 council in 2022, receiving 349 votes (7.63%), per the City's certified results. Shawn Lewis, the city's Deputy Mayor, is the incumbent, first elected in 2018 and re-elected in 2022 with 89% of the vote, per the City's certified results.
The rest of the field, in alphabetical order: Zack Ramsey and Steve Reed.
Listed alphabetically. Identical treatment for every candidate. That's the deal.
Ran for Ward 13 council in 2022: 349 votes (7.63%), per the City's certified results.
Identical questions go to every declared candidate. Answers are published verbatim; “no response” is reported plainly.
Re-elected Ward 2 councillor in 2022 with 89% of the vote, per the City's certified results.
Identical questions go to every declared candidate. Answers are published verbatim; “no response” is reported plainly.
Identical questions go to every declared candidate. Answers are published verbatim; “no response” is reported plainly.
Identical questions go to every declared candidate. Answers are published verbatim; “no response” is reported plainly.
No endorsements · Same rules for every candidate · Sources linked · Answers published word for word · How we research →
Honestly told: the situation, the numbers, and what to ask the people who want your vote.
Phase 5 of the East London Link, the final phase, began March 16, 2026 and closed Dundas Street from McCormick Boulevard to Highbury Avenue, including Ashland Avenue. Final does not mean short: the city expects this phase to be complete in approximately 2028, so the disruption runs through most of the term of the council elected in October, not one more year. The link runs through and near the ward along Dundas Street and Highbury Avenue, connecting downtown to Fanshawe College.
Phase 5 (Dundas Street from McCormick Boulevard to Highbury Avenue, including Ashland Avenue) began March 16, 2026, and the city gives expected completion as approximately 2028. City of London (Phase 5 public service announcement) ↗
Name one concrete thing you'd do this year for the residents and businesses along the East London Link construction.
The 57-hectare former London Psychiatric Hospital site at 850 Highbury Ave. N., newly pulled into Ward 2, is set to become what the city calls the largest residential development in London's history, with a commercial "village core," parkland, and a planned direct connection to the East London Link. Build-out runs for decades; the next several councils will manage its phasing, infrastructure demand, and community impact.
Roughly 8,400 housing units across 10 towers, built out in phases over roughly two decades; four heritage-designated structures and a heritage tree allée are being retained. Council approved the enabling amendments in October 2024. City of London ↗
What has to be built before the first of the 8,400 homes on the hospital lands, and who pays for it?
The incumbent frames his two terms around correcting a "long-neglected" east end, citing roads, sewers, parks, traffic calming at elementary school zones, and the East Lions Community Centre (opened December 2021). The open question for 2026: do the newly added parts of the ward (Hale–Highbury, Culver/Parkhurst, the psychiatric-hospital lands) get the same investment going forward?
Candidate-stated figures from the incumbent's campaign materials, not independently audited: over $35 million invested, 20 road/sewer projects, 6 major park upgrades, and the $23.5 million East Lions Community Centre. Re-verified August 23, 2026; his site previously stated 17 projects and $21.5 million and now states 20 and $23.5 million. campaign site (candidate-stated) ↗
Which newly added Ward 2 neighbourhood needs infrastructure first, and what would you push for there?
Who oversees London Transit is unsettled. After three London Transit Commission board members resigned amid leadership concerns in early 2025, council voted to dissolve the LTC's board and put five councillors in charge as an interim commission while the oversight model gets reviewed. Incumbent Shawn Lewis co-sponsored the motion that started the change; he was not appointed to the interim committee. In June 2026 council accepted the governance review's recommendation to return to a mixed board, four councillors and three citizen appointees, with the changeover planned for after the October election; the councillor-run interim continues until then.
The committee motion passed 9–6; full council then voted 10–5 to dissolve the LTC board. CBC News ↗
What permanent oversight model for London Transit would you vote for?
The Ward 2 on this fall's ballot is a different map than the one voted on in 2018 and 2022. It loses Old East Village and gains the Hale-to-Highbury area, several neighbourhoods off First and Second Streets, the Culver Drive/Parkhurst area, and the psychiatric-hospital lands. The change takes legal effect November 15, 2026; check the city's interactive ward map to confirm which ward you now vote in.
Name one thing you'll do in your first six months for the neighbourhoods newly added to Ward 2.
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.
Only one is on your ballot; which depends on your school-support designation. The guide above explains.
You’ve read the ward. Ward races here can come down to a few hundred ballots, sometimes fewer. In a race that close, your vote is one of the ones that decides it. You don’t need to know everything. You just need to show up, informed.
You’ll need ID with your name and address. Full voting guide: where, what to bring, who can vote →