The Municipality of Chatham-Kent released financial disclosures from all candidates in the 2022 Municipal Election.

It was mandatory for candidates to file their financial report, listing all contributions and expenses from their election campaigns to the municipality by March 31, 2023.

Steve Pinsonneault spent $3,206.46 for his third successful campaign in East Kent Ward 3, while John Wright’s campaign expense was $2,323.24 to earn a second term.

Both incumbents’ campaign contributions equalled their expenses.

Pinsonneault collected 2,049 votes and Wright 1,727 to maintain their Ward 3 seats.

Morena McDonald, who finished third in voting with 1,161 ballots, reported $2,890 in total campaign contributions and $2,882.92 in expenses.

Matt Lamarche, who collected 315 votes, claimed $100 expenses which were paid out of pocket.

Martin Fisher, who finished fifth with 216 votes, did not claim any contributions or expenses.

Meanwhile, Randy Campbell, of Blenheim, retained his Trustee seat on the Lambton Kent District School Board for Wards 1, 2 and 3 with a $149 campaign, which was spent on advertising and paid out of pocket. Campbell is now serving his fifth term and is Chair of the LKDSB Board of Trustees.

Angela Richards, of Croton, finished second to earn the second LK Trustee seat without spending a penny during the pre-election.

Chris White, of Harwich Twp., used $617 in inventory from the 2018 election as he finished third in both unsuccessful runs.

A second seat opened when Scott McKinlay of Morpeth stepped down after being a Trustee since 2000.

Jann Tooshkenig was acclaimed as the Ward 3 English Catholic Trustee.

Darrin Canniff won a second term as Mayor as he spent $9,844.81 in election expenses – $6,941.31 in advertising – despite running against two first-time political opponents. Canniff only paid $258.81 out of pocket as seven backers each gave $1,200 to his campaign.

William Pickard, of Thamesville, finished second in the Mayoral race and spent $4,220.91 on his campaign with all but $100 coming out of pocket.

Andy Fisher, of Chatham, finished third and spent $808 out of pocket.

The two candidates in the 2022 Municipal Elections who had the highest expenses were unsuccessful in their election bids.

Dava Robichaud, of Chatham, ran the most expensive campaign with expenses of $12,316.22 but finished a distant 11th in the race for six seats in Ward 6 Chatham.

Carson Warrener, who finished seventh in Ward 6 just 10 votes shy of the sixth-place finisher, was second in spending with expenses of $11,009.25.

Both were first-time Council candidates.

Amy Finn finished 10 votes ahead of Warrener to claim the sixth and final seat despite using the same signs, worth $400, from her successful 2018 campaign. She had no other expenses besides the election fee and did not receive a penny in contributions.

Three successful first-time councillors were the only other candidates whose campaign totals were over $8,000, as Conor Allin spent $9,771.06 and Alysson Storey $9,210 in expenses to win their Ward 6 seats. In contrast, Rhonda Jubenville’s campaign expense was $8,163.40 in Ward 4 North Kent.Brock McGregor, who collected the most votes in Ward 6, had $5,356.12 in expenses in his second campaign of the year as he was unsuccessful as the NDP candidate in the June provincial election.

Marjorie Crew and Michael Bondy retained their Ward 6 seats while running campaigns of $3,686.96 and $1,748.67, respectively.

The four Ward 2 South Kent candidates were all in the same ballpark for contributions and expenses.

Anthony Ceccacci of Blenheim, who led all South Kent candidates in the polls, also ran the most expensive campaign. Ceccacci claimed $6,657.09 in total expenses while receiving $6,570 in total contributions.

Trevor Thompson, of Cedar Springs, finished second in the voting, paid $3,479 in expenses, and claimed $3,824.95 in total contributions.

Ryan Doyle, of Harwich Twp., earned the third Ward 2 seat by one vote, claiming $3,049.22 in expenses and $3,050 in contributions in his first election.

Mary Clare Latimer, of Harwich Twp., missed re-election by one vote behind Doyle. Latimer reported $3,351.75 in expenses and $3,353.56 in contributions.

Mike Walker, of South Buxton, was the fifth South Kent candidate who did not file a financial statement making him ineligible for the next municipal election.

Melissa Harrigan successfully earned a second term in West Kent Ward 1 with a $2,568.35 campaign, but shortly after was diagnosed with breast cancer and is currently on a leave of absence.

Lauren Anderson’s campaign expense was $4,440 as she won Ward 2’s second seat in her first election.

Jamie McGrail was re-elected in North Kent Ward 4 with a $2,389.69 campaign.

Carmen McGregor and Aaron Hall were acclaimed in Ward 5 Wallaceburg.

The complete financial report of all candidates in the 2022 election, including a list of each individual’s campaign donors, can be found online at www.chatham-kent.ca. Click on Local Government on the main bar, scroll down to Municipal Elections and click on ‘Candidates Financial Disclosure,’ where a link to all candidates will appear alphabetically.

Michael Bennett, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Ridgetown Independent News