McLaughlin Tops Broughton for Mayor's Chair
Three new faces join Abbott on Council

After a long evening of counting, unofficial municipal election results are in, and the Village of Lions Bay has a new council.
Chief Electoral Officer Ross Blackwell reported that ballots counted this evening included those cast today, as well as ballots from the advanced voting that took place on October 7, along with any mail-in votes received.
Blackwell tells The Watershed the preliminary results* are:
Mayoral Candidates
Ron McLaughlin, 371 (Mayor-elect)
Michael Broughton, 329
Council Candidates
Adam Solheim 468 (Councillor-elect)
Ehsan Monfared, 359 (Councillor-elect)
Leslie Nolin, 348 (Councillor-elect)
Neville Abbott, 321 (Incumbent, Councillor-elect)
Jaime Cunliffe, 315 (Incumbent)
Eric Balac, 274
Carmon Leeson, 224
Chris Stevens, 142
School Trustee Candidates
Felicia Zhu, 6281 (Incumbent, Trustee-elect)
Sheelah Donahue, 6257 (Incumbent, Trustee-elect)
Richard Loat, 5220 (Trustee-elect)
John Calimente, 5216 (Trustee-elect)
Karen Straith, 5,063 (Trustee-elect)
John O'Flynn, 3654
Roman Nurpeissov, 2933
700 ballots were cast out of a total of 1,087 eligible voters, meaning a turnout of just under 70 percent, far surpassing most municipalities in the province, where the average turnout was closer to 30 percent.
New Council members will be sworn in on November 3. A meeting to mark the transition to the new Council is planned for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, October 20, in lieu of a regular Council meeting.
*Preliminary figures, as released October 17, 2026. Official results will be posted on the Village of Lions Bay website HERE.
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The fact that almost 70% of eligible voters in Lions Bay cast ballots in this election is truly remarkable.
Well done, Lions Bay.