Keanin Loomis has been elected as the next mayor of Hamilton, defeating incumbent Andrea Horwath, who finished a distant third. The business leader appears to have captured 41 per cent of the vote, with more than 88 per cent of polls reporting. Horwath, a former Ontario NDP leader and ex-Hamilton councillor, captured about 14 per cent of the vote. Hamilton City Coun. Rob Cooper finished second with about 32 per cent of the vote. Loomis is the former head of the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce. Most recently, he served as the president and CEO of the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction. Horwath previously beat Loomis by roughly 1,600 votes in the city’s 2022 mayoral election. On Monday night, however, Loomis beat Horwath by nearly 40,000 votes. ‘A true Hamilton story’ In his victory speech, Loomis said his win is about more than winning an election. “It’s about hope. It’s about change, and it’s about believing again in what this city can be,” he told supporters at his election-night party. “Four years ago, I stood in front of Hamilton and gave a very different speech. We lost by 1,663 votes. We didn’t quit. We didn’t walk away. We stayed. We listened, and we came back. It’s a true Hamilton story.” Loomis thanked his opponents, his campaign team, his family, as well as those who voted for him, saying that he’ll “work every single day to prove that it was the right decision.” “More than anything, this win belongs to you, the people of Hamilton, and hope only means something if we turn that into action,” he said. Loomis said that means building the right team at Hamilton City Hall and “getting the basics right.” ‘Roads that get fixed, services that get delivered, safer neighbourhoods, a city hall that helps you build and invest here instead of making you jump through hoops,“ he said. “It means respecting your tax dollars, showing you what you’re getting for them, and being held accountable for the results. It means helping the silent voices and the most vulnerable in the city, who are too often unseen and unheard. It means standing with our steel workers and our steel industry.” Loomis is pledging to bring business and labour leaders together alongside other levels of government to protect jobs amid the trade war with the U.S. “Because Steeltown is nothing without our steel workers and their families. Now, help doesn’t come because I get to stand on the stage and say it’s back, and change won’t happen just because of an election,” he said. “It starts with a new approach, a collaborative approach, a Team Hamilton approach. I can’t do this alone. It’s going to take council and city staff, business and labour, our universities, hospitals, and community organizations, Queens Park and Ottawa, and all of you.” ‘Five-year journey’ Speaking with CP24’s Andrew Brennan late Monday night, Loomis called his win a “five-year journey.” “Hamilton loves a comeback. It’s a comeback city. It’s poised for a comeback as well, because tonight is the night that we change and we’re headed in a different direction,” he said. Loomis said when it coms to protecting jobs in the steel industry, a major issue that directly affects his city and one he says he knows “very intimately,” Hamilton needs to work with the provincial and federal governments. “I will lead the way here locally, advocacy-wise, bringing together all the local businesses, the labour groups as well, and make sure that people understand and appreciate how important those jobs are to Hamilton,” he said.
