Candidates and hot-button issues: A 2026 municipal election primer

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Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper has announced he will run for mayor. ASHLEY FRASER/Postmedia Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia

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Leiper, known as a progressive voice at the council table, has served as Kitchissippi’s councillor since 2014, where he was re-elected in 2018 and again in 2022 with 72 per cent of the vote. He chairs the city’s planning and housing committee and has served on numerous standing and sub-committees during his tenure.

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He cited the unreliable transit system, the housing affordability crisis and concerns about declining city services as early priorities when he announced his candidacy.

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“Services are getting worse, not better,” Leiper told reporters at the time. Leiper was one of ten councillors who opposed the Lansdowne 2.0 redevelopment when it passed by a 15-10 council vote in November.

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Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe was a key presenter at the Ottawa Health and Housing Symposium on April 10. Jean Levac/Ottawa Citizen Photo by Jean Levac /Jean Levac

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McKenney has since been elected to the Ontario legislature representing Ottawa Centre for the NDP.

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Sutcliffe has cited a number of priorities for the current council term, with a focus on affordability, housing, public transit, the flow of traffic and improving safety downtown and in the ByWard Market.

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“There’s still a lot of work to do this term, and I’m not really focused on the election,” he said during a year-end interview in December.

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A recent Liaison Strategies poll, commissioned by the Ottawa Compass and iPolitics, surveyed 1,000 residents in mid-April and found nearly half (48 per cent) of voters are undecided.

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Sutcliffe was the frontrunner among the three declared candidates with 46 per cent support, while Leiper had 37 per cent and 13 per cent favoured Lawson. Another four per cent favoured other candidates. (Saravanamootoo was not named in the survey)

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Transit was a top priority for Ottawa voters who responded to a survey in April. JEAN LEVAC/Ottawa Citizen Photo by Jean Levac /Jean Levac

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What are the big campaign issues?

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The cost of living, housing affordability and reliable public transit will be among the key issues for Ottawa voters this fall.

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An Abacus Data survey of 1,000 residents, released by the Ottawa Real Estate Board in January, found that 37 per cent of respondents cited the cost of living as the city’s most important issue, followed by housing affordability (19 per cent) and the reliability of public transit (11 per cent.)

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More than three quarters (77 per cent) of respondents said housing is unaffordable in Ottawa and 82 per cent said housing-related issues will be important in determining which candidate they vote for in October, according to OREB.

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Confidence in OC Transpo’s beleaguered rail service and overall transit reliability will also be major issues in the campaign, with 37 per cent identifying transit as a priority for candidates.

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Major city projects like the Lansdowne 2.0 revitalization project also drew mixed reviews from survey respondents, with 37 per cent opposing the plan and only 27 per cent in favour.

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A significant share of respondents (43 per cent) viewed the project as an unnecessary financial burden for taxpayers, according to the Abacus survey.

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Construction at Lansdowne Park, March 24, 2026. TONY CALDWELL, Postmedia. Photo by Tony Caldwell /Postmedia

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The more recent Liaison Strategies poll in April showed a negative approval rating for the mayor on a number of issues, with 71 per cent disapproving Sutcliffe’s handling of transit, 58 per cent disapproving of his approach to homelessness and 54 per cent disapproving of housing affordability.

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Sutcliffe’s best performance in the Liaison Strategies poll came on issues of crime, with 44 per cent approving and 48 per cent disapproving, according to iPolitics.