Jeromy Farkas unofficial winner of Calgary mayoral race in tight election

Independent candidate Jeromy Farkas has emerged victorious in Calgary’s 2025 municipal election — the unofficial winner of the mayor’s seat after a closely contested race that saw him edge out incumbent Jyoti Gondek and Communities First Party candidate Sonya Sharp.

Speaking on Tuesday, the mayor-elect promoted a message of teamwork on the steps of city hall as he looks towards the future as the city’s new mayor.

“At city hall there’s no left, no right, only forward, only together,” he said. “Starting today I’ll begin the work of bringing this new city council together. United, focused, and ready to serve.”

“Because we all want the same things: safety, affordability, opportunity. Those aren’t left-wing ideas or right-wing ideas, they are Calgary ideas.”

The unofficial results from Elections Calgary have Farkas with 91,065 votes, followed closely by Sharp with 90,480 votes. Gondek came in third with 71,397 votes, that is, with all 380 polls reporting.

Sharp has formally requested a recount of the vote and is awaiting a response from the city’s Chief Returning Officer, but Farkas said Tuesday that the mayoral transition has begun.

“We have been designated the mayor-elect, and looking forward to the official recognition of the results,” he said.

Farkas’s win marks a significant shift in Calgary’s political landscape. Leading up to the Oct. 20 vote, polls showed him gaining momentum as election day approached.

A former city councillor who came in second to Gondek in the 2021 mayoral election, Farkas has said his campaign focus was on “a household you can afford, jobs you can count on, safe streets for our kids, and leadership we can trust.”

After his 2021 election loss, he served as CEO of the Glenbow Ranch Park Foundation.

Claiming he has evolved as a candidate since the last election, he has faced criticism from his political opponents for changing his stance on specific issues, such as blanket rezoning, which he has vowed to repeal.

His platform, which emphasized fiscal responsibility, public safety, and infrastructure reform, appears to have resonated with a swath of Calgarians seeking change.

Farkas says not belonging to a political party gives him the latitude to push back against the province and Danielle Smith’s UCP government when necessary.

With the mayoral seat seemingly secured, he now faces the task of uniting a city that saw a fragmented vote. His administration will need to navigate a council representing 14 wards, each with its own priorities and challenges.

Due to provincial restrictions on electronic tabulators, all ballots were counted manually, delaying official results well into the night. Several voters reported lengthy delays across Calgary voting locations, with many remaining lined up well after polls closed at 8 p.m.

Early numbers suggest voter turnout is down from the last two municipal elections in 2021 and 2017.

Full election results for Calgary and municipalities across Southern Alberta can be found here.