Ottawa's new council will have more women than men, first time since 2001
Thirteen of Ottawa's 24 councillors elected on 26 October 2026 are women, the first time since the city's 2001 amalgamation that women hold a majority of council seats.
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Ottawa's next city council will have more women than men for the first time since the city merged its former municipalities into one in 2001, CBC News reported on 27 October 2026, the day after voting day.
According to preliminary results, 13 of the 24 elected councillors are women. The other 11 seats went to men. Mayor Mark Sutcliffe is also a man.
Three new seats
Three women won seats that men held in the previous term: Chelsea Walton in Stittsville, Joanne Chianello in Kitchissippi, and Erin Coffin in Kanata South.
Between 2006 and 2022, between four and nine women won council seats in any given election, CBC reported.
What the councillors said
Chianello told CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning: "I do think it's important that our city council reflects the community that it actually represents," pointing to Ottawa having more women than men in its population.
Walton told the same program she encountered some sexist comments during the campaign. "I think that we need a diverse range of voices around the council table and I'm thrilled to have so many women sitting there," she said.
Returning Alta Vista councillor Marty Carr said women on the previous council were overworked because committee assignments required meeting gender balance requirements. She called the preliminary results "an amazing development."
Reaction beyond council
Laurel Gillespie, executive director of Equal Voice, a national group that advocates for more women in government, told CBC the results excited her. She noted that Canada ranked 72nd out of 183 countries in a recent ranking of women in national legislatures, down from 28th place in 2000.
The new council will take office after the City of Ottawa certifies the official results. Residents can visit the Ottawa 2026 news page for updates as results are confirmed.
Q&A
Q: Which ward did each new woman win? Chelsea Walton won Ward 6 (Stittsville), Joanne Chianello won Ward 15 (Kitchissippi), and Erin Coffin won Ward 23 (Kanata South). All three seats were held by men in the 2022 to 2026 term, according to CBC.
Q: Will the council count change once official results are in? The 13-to-11 split among councillors is based on preliminary results from election night. Mail-in ballots and any recounts could affect individual races, though large shifts in the overall gender count would require multiple races to change. The City Clerk will certify the official results in the days following the election.
Questions this story answers
How many women were elected to Ottawa city council on 26 October 2026?
CBC News reported on 27 October 2026 that 13 of Ottawa's 24 councillors elected that day are women. The other 11 seats went to men. The mayor, Mark Sutcliffe, is also a man, so the full 25-person body will have 13 women and 12 men. These are preliminary results.
When was the last time Ottawa had a majority-women council?
CBC News reported that this is the first time since Ottawa's 2001 amalgamation that a majority of councillors are women. Between 2006 and 2022, between four and nine women won council seats in any given election, CBC reported.
Which three women are new to council this term?
Chelsea Walton won the Stittsville ward, Joanne Chianello won the Kitchissippi ward, and Erin Coffin won the Kanata South ward. Each took a seat previously held by a man in the 2022 council term, CBC reported.
What did the newly elected women say about the result?
Joanne Chianello told CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning: 'I do think it's important that our city council reflects the community that it actually represents.' Chelsea Walton said she encountered some sexist comments during the campaign and added: 'I think that we need a diverse range of voices around the council table and I'm thrilled to have so many women sitting there.'
What did returning councillors say about the outcome?
Returning Alta Vista councillor Marty Carr told CBC that the women on the previous council were overworked because of how committee assignments were shared to meet gender balance requirements. She called Monday's results 'an amazing development.'
What is Equal Voice and what did they say?
Equal Voice is a national organization that advocates for more women in government. Its executive director, Laurel Gillespie, told CBC the results excited her. She also pointed to how Canada ranked 72nd out of 183 countries in a recent ranking of the number of women in national legislatures, down from 28th place in 2000.
Where can I find information about the new council members?
You can read about each of the councillors elected on 26 October 2026 on their candidate pages on this site. The new council will take office after Ottawa's election results are certified by the City Clerk following the count of all ballots, including mail-in ballots. Visit the Ottawa 2026 news page for updates.
Are these final results?
CBC reported these as preliminary results from election night on 26 October 2026. The City of Ottawa will certify the official results after all ballots, including mail-in ballots, have been counted. Voters can check the City of Ottawa's website for official results once available.
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