Grimsby Citizens For Responsible Growth

10/27/2026

2026 GRIMSBY MUNICIPAL ELECTION — UNOFFICIAL RESULTS
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The votes have been counted and here are the unofficial results of the October 26, 2026, Grimsby Municipal Election.

MAYOR
✅ Jeff JORDAN — 4,223 (39.2%) ELECTED
Simon DUONG — 3,690 (34.3%)
Veronica CHARROIS — 1,657 (15.4%)
Michelle SEABORN — 1,191 (11.1%)

WARD 1 — COUNCILLORS
✅ Margot SMEENK — 2,206 ELECTED
✅ George BODNAR — 1,463 ELECTED
Kevin RITCHIE — 1,005

WARD 2 — COUNCILLORS
✅ Lianne VARDY — 1,655 ELECTED
✅ Don HOWE — 1,458 ELECTED
David SCOTT — 1,366
Ben PURKISS — 1,364

WARD 3 — COUNCILLORS
✅ Jacob BARADZIEJ — 1,399 ELECTED
✅ Jennifer KORSTANJE — 1,252 ELECTED
Joanne JOHNSTON — 773
Ryan DAY — 642
Jonathan POLOWICK — 500
Shane WEAVER — 414
John DUNSTALL — 374
Amy LUPTON — 180

WARD 4 — COUNCILLORS
✅ Nick DIFLAVIO — 888 ELECTED
✅ Reg FREAKE — 634 ELECTED
Wayne F. FERITCH — 573

Congratulations to all candidates who put their name forward to serve our community, the residents who exercised their right to vote, and Town staff who administered the election.

NOTE: These results are unofficial and remain subject to change or correction.

Town of Grimsby election results page:
https://www.grimsby.ca/town-hall/elections/2026-election-results/

10/26/2026

ELECTION DAY: POLLING STATIONS ACROSS GRIMSBY ARE NOW OPEN UNTIL 8PM
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Polling stations across Town opened this morning at 10AM for residents wishing to cast their ballot the old fashioned way, on paper. With advanced and internet voting having accounting for 20% of eligible Grimsby voters before today, there may be a large overall turnout for this election cycle. Turnout could possibly beat the 43.79% number seen in 2018.

If you have not yet voted, you have two options.

1. Internet Voting at https://vote.grimsby.ca

You will need to have your Voter Information Letter (VIL) handy to gain access to the portal and your ballot.

The portal will be available until 8PM tonight, when all polls officially close.

2. In-Person Voting at Your Designated Polling Location

Ward 1: Niagara West YMCA
325 Main Street East

Ward 2: Central French Immersion School/GSS
5 Boulton Avenue

Ward 3: Major Refrigeration Peach King Centre
162 Livingston Avenue

Ward 4: LiUNA Training Centre
260 Hunter Road

As with Internet Voting, these polls will remain open until 8PM tonight.

Identification and your Voter Information Letter will help speed up your in-person voting experience.

Not sure what Ward you are? Check the Town’s GIS map to determine which poll is yours: Town of Grimsby Ward Map at https://grimsby.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=456a237891eb4c6c87d07ec1107235b4

Have questions about the election? Contact the town at [email protected] or via telephone at 905-945-9634 x2003.

Exercise your right to vote and have a say in who represents you at Town Hall and the Region of Niagara.

Good luck to all candidates!

10/09/2026

GRIMSBY VOTES WARDS 1, 2 & 4 COUNCILLORS DEBATE ONLINE
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In case you missed it, or rather in case you did not head out to the Wards 1, 2 and 4 Councillors Debate on Thursday night at the Grimsby Legion, NewsNow has posted their recording of the event for your review.

You can watch the the multi-ward debate coverage on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8Xx1Q-ArHM

Although not all of candidates from each could participate, as always voters should do their own research and most importantly, get out and vote.

That is a wrap on the series!

Grimsby voters gathered on the evening of Oct. 8 to hear six candid...

10/09/2026

GRIMSBY VOTES WARD 3 COUNCILLORS DEBATE VIDEO ONLINE
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In case you missed it, or rather in case you did not head out to the Ward 3 Councillors Debate on Wednesday night at the Grimsby Legion, NewsNow has posted their recording of the event for your review.

You can watch the Ward 3 Debate coverage on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObwQ4gBHxX4

A link to the Wards 1,2 and 4 combined debate will be posted when NewsNow publishes that video to YouTube.

Although not all of the Ward 3 candidates could participate, as always voters should do their own research and most importantly, get out and vote.

Grimsby, ON's Ward 3 candidates gathered to debate local issues bef...

10/08/2026

ICYMI: GRIMSBY VOTES MAYORAL DEBATE VIDEO POSTED ONLINE
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In case you missed it, or rather in case you did not head out to the Mayoral Debate on Monday night at the Grimsby Legion, NewsNow has posted their recording of the event for your review.

You can watch their Mayoral Debate coverage on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NdSlHf9Cdg

It is not known if the October 7th and 8th Ward Councillor debates are being recorded, but if they do appear online, those will get posted here as well.

Although the full complement of Mayoral candidates did not participate, as always voters should do their own research and most importantly, get out and vote.

Two of Grimsby, ON's mayoral hopefuls met for a debate on Monday ev...

10/01/2026

REMINDER: CANDIDATES MEET & GREET - SATURDAY OCTOBER 3

In case you missed it, the Grimsby & District Chamber of Commerce is holding its "All-Candidates Meet & Greet" this Saturday, October 3 at St. Andrew’s Church from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM.

The event gives Grimsby voters an opportunity to hear directly from candidates about their views and positions on issues affecting local residents and businesses.

Admission is free, the event is open to the public, and no registration is required.

The Meet & Greet will take place in the church’s Parish Hall, located just steps from the main building.

This is a family-friendly community event, and the Chamber is asking attendees to be respectful when engaging with candidates, volunteers, organizers, and one another.

Where: St. Andrew’s Church - Parish Hall, 7 St. Andrews Avenue
When: Saturday, October 3, 10:00 AM-2:00 PM

09/29/2026

POLITICAL SPAM? “TEAM SIMON DUONG” TEXTS GRIMSBY VOTERS
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A text asking “Can he count on your vote?” is reaching the personal phones of Grimsby residents.

Simon Duong confirmed that the messages are part of his campaign’s voter outreach and that a service provider supplied the list being used. He also confirmed that the campaign plans to use supportive responses to remind supporters to vote.

UPDATE - September 30: Ward 2 candidate Ben Purkiss has also publicly confirmed using political texting. The article has been updated accordingly.

But where did the phone numbers come from?

Duong did not identify the service provider, explain where the numbers on the provider-supplied list originated, or say how many Grimsby residents are being contacted.

But the text does more than deliver a campaign message. A response can also provide the campaign with information about a voter’s political support.

The post below takes a closer look at the messages, Duong’s response, the provider-supplied list, and the questions that remain unanswered.

Read the full post:

Political Spam? “Team Simon Duong” Texts Grimsby Voters September 29, 2026 / GCFRG Image Credit: Original Screenshot w/Generative AI Campaigning during municipal elections in Grimsby has traditionally been a very grassroots affair: candidates knocking on doors, delivering flyers and door hangers...

09/26/2026

JORDAN & CHARROIS IN, SEABORN DECLINES, DUONG OUT — FULL DEBATE LINEUP
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The final participation list is in for the Grimsby Votes debates on October 5, 7 and 8.

For Mayor, Veronica Charrois and Jeff Jordan are confirmed, while Michelle Seaborn declined. Simon Duong initially confirmed verbally, later made his participation conditional, and ultimately will not be participating.

Ward candidate participation is considerably higher, with 12 of Grimsby’s 18 Ward Councillor candidates confirmed, including every candidate in Ward 2 and six of eight in Ward 3.

The organizers have also made several changes to the format, including providing participating candidates with the questions four days in advance.

See who is participating, who is not, the full Mayoral and Ward debate lineup and event details below.

Grimsby Votes: Jordan & Charrois In, Seaborn Declines, Duong Out of Debate — See the Full Candidate List September 26, 2026 / GCFRG We have received an updated candidate participation list from the organizers of “Grimsby Votes” for the Mayoral and Ward Councillor debates being held at the Grim...

09/22/2026

NEWSNOW MAYORAL PODCASTS: THE PANEL’S FINAL VERDICT

After three separate reviews, our Review Panel has now finished looking at the NewsNow interviews with Simon Duong, Jeff Jordan and Michelle Seaborn.

Each interview was reviewed using the same basic question:

What did the candidate actually demonstrate about understanding and carrying out the job of Mayor?

The interviews were not identical. Mike Williscraft asked different questions and follow-ups, so subjects that were not meaningfully tested were treated as unknown, not weaknesses.

THE REVIEW PANEL’S BOTTOM LINE:

The Panel ranked Jeff Jordan first (70.5/100), Michelle Seaborn second (64.6/100), and Simon Duong third (43.8/100). While Jordan and Seaborn were closely matched, Duong trailed significantly behind both.

Jeff Jordan showed his strongest evidence on municipal governance, Niagara Region, finances and infrastructure, with less detail on ex*****on and Council reform.

Michelle Seaborn showed strong knowledge of Regional services, infrastructure reserves and growth, but was weaker on procedure and implementation.

Simon Duong showed a clear strength in collaboration and consensus-building, but much less depth on municipal governance, Regional decision-making, finances and administration.

The biggest lesson from the series was that having an idea and explaining how municipal government can actually carry it out are two different things.

NOTE: Veronica Charrois politely declined NewsNow's invitation to participate in the series.

WANT THE FULL BREAKDOWN?

Follow the link below for the complete wrap-up and our three candidate-by-candidate reviews.

NewsNow Mayoral Podcast Wrap-Up: The Panel Ranks The Candidates September 22, 2026 / GCFRG The robots are almost needing a recharge after extensively reviewing three of Grimsby’s Mayoral candidates; Simon Duong, Jeff Jordan and Michelle Seaborn in their NewsNow podcast interviews. So before the ro...

09/21/2026

2026 GRIMSBY MAYORAL & COUNCILLOR DEBATES ANNOUNCED
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While election campaigns are full of signs, websites, social media management and carefully prepared messages, few things underscore the democratic process quite like good old-fashioned political debates, an opportunity to hear directly from, and put questions before, those seeking your vote.

We have been informed that, once again, Grimsby voters will have the opportunity to hear from municipal candidates in early October through a series of public debates organized by Grimsby Votes, an independent ad hoc group of local residents.

DATES & LOCATION

Monday, October 5 — Mayoral Debate
Wednesday, October 7 — Ward 3 Councillor Debate
Thursday, October 8 — Wards 1, 2 & 4 Councillor Debate

Grimsby Legion, Clarke Street
7:00 p.m. to approximately 8:30 p.m.

The Mayoral Debate will be held upstairs, with seating for approximately 190 people. The Ward Councillor debates will be held downstairs, with seating for approximately 140.

DEBATE FORMAT

Each debate will be moderated by an independent professional moderator, with candidates answering the same questions under the same time limits.

The format will include opening and closing statements, questions gathered from the public beforehand, and a rapid-fire YES/NO round.

Time permitting, there may also be candidate-to-candidate questions.

Among the areas expected to be covered are governance, taxes and municipal finances, infrastructure, transit, economic development and Regional matters.

FREE TO ATTEND / HELP GBF

There is no admission fee, but organizers are encouraging residents to bring a food donation for GBF Community Services.

WATCH FOR UPDATES

For Grimsby voters, the debates offer a chance to see the candidates together, responding directly to the issues and questions being raised by the community.

Once the final list of participating candidates is available, we will publish an update with the full roster.

Feel free to pass this information along to friends, neighbours and family who may not otherwise hear about the debates, so as many Grimsby residents as possible have the opportunity to attend.

NOTE: GCFRG is not involved in planning or organizing these debates. We were provided with the event information and published it because we believed residents would want to know the dates, location and format.