The 1997 Ontario municipal elections were led in all municipalities across the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

on November 10, 1997, to elect mayors and reeves, councillors, and school trustees. There were also referendum questions in some municipalities. The most closely watched contest was in the newly amalgamated city of

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, where

Mel Lastman Melvin Douglas Lastman (March 9, 1933 – December 11, 2021) was a Canadian businessman and politician who served as the third mayor of North York from 1973 to 1997 and 62nd mayor of Toronto from 1998 to 2003. He was the first person to serve ...

narrowly defeated Barbara Hall to win the mayoralty. In other results,

Hazel McCallion Hazel McCallion, (; born February 14, 1921) is a Canadian businesswoman and retired politician who served as the fifth mayor of Mississauga, Ontario, from 1978 until 2014. She is the first and current chancellor of Sheridan College. McCallion ...

was re-elected in

Mississauga Mississauga ( ), historically known as Toronto Township, is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is situated on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, adjoining the western border of Toronto. With a popul ...

Bob Morrow Robert Maxwell Morrow (August 9, 1946 – February 4, 2018) was a Canadian politician who served as 52nd mayor of Hamilton from 1982 to 2000. He was the longest-serving mayor in the city's history. Political career Born in Hamilton, Morrow fi ...

was returned in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

, and

Dianne Haskett Dianne Louise Haskett (born March 4, 1955) is a Canadian lawyer, politician, and diplomat who served as the mayor of London, Ontario, Canada, serving from 1994 to 2000, and later ran unsuccessfully as the Conservative candidate in the 2006 feder ...

was elected in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

.Murray Campbell and Susan Delacourt, "Ontario Municipal Elections," ''Globe and Mail'', 11 November 1997, A1.

Elected mayors

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Greek ...

: Steve Parish *

Barrie Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically i ...

Janice Laking Janice Laking, (née McCuaig; ) is a Canadian retired politician, who served as mayor of Barrie, Ontario from 1988 to 2000. The daughter of former Simcoe North federal Member of Parliament Duncan Fletcher McCuaig, Laking was first elected to Bar ...

Brampton Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a List of municipalities in Ontario#Lower-tier municipalities, lower-tier municipalit ...

: Peter Robertson *

Brantford Brantford (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population: 104,688) is a city in Ontario, Canada, founded on the Grand River (Ontario), Grand River in Southwestern Ontario. It is surrounded by County of Brant, Brant County, but is politically separate with ...

: Chris Friel (

details Detail(s) or The Detail(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''Details'' (film), a 2003 Swedish film * ''The Details'' (film), a 2011 American film * ''The Detail'', a Canadian television series * "The Detail" (''The Wire''), a television epis ...

) *

Burlington Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, no ...

: Robert MacIsaac *

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

Jane Brewer Jane Brewer (1924-2017) was a Canadian politician and a former mayor of the city of Cambridge, Ontario. Brewer was born April 15, 1924, to Jack and Clara Davison. Her political career began in 1978 when she was elected a ward alderman. She went o ...

Chatham-Kent Chatham-Kent ( 2021 population: 104,316)Bill Erickson *

Clarington Clarington (2021 population 101,427) is a lower-tier municipality in the Regional Municipality of Durham in Ontario, Canada. It was incorporated in 1973 as the town of Newcastle with the merging of the town of Bowmanville, the Village of Newcastl ...

: Diane Hamre *

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

: Brian Sylvester *

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

Claudette Cain Claudette is a feminine form of the masculine given name Claude. Claudette may refer to: People * Claudette Boyer (born 1938), Canadian politician * Claudette Bradshaw (1949–2022), Canadian politician * Claudette Bryanston, English theatre ...

(

) *

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as "The Royal City", Guelph is roughly east of Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Highway 6, Highway 7 and Wel ...

: Joe Young (

) *

Halton Hills ) , image_map = , mapsize = 200px , map_caption = , pushpin_map = CAN ON Halton#Canada Southern Ontario , pushpin_map_caption = , coordinates = , subdivision_type ...

: Marilyn Serjeantson *

(

) * Kanata: Merle Nicholds (

) * Kingston: Gary Bennett * Kitchener:

Carl Zehr Carl Zehr (born ) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was the mayor of Kitchener, Ontario from 1997 to 2014. Prior to that he was a city councillor from 1985 to 1994. As of 2014, he was the longest-serving mayor in Kitchener. He was a mem ...

Markham Markham may refer to: It may also refer to brand of of clothing which originates from South Africa which saw it's establishment in 1873. Biology * Markham's storm-petrel (''Oceanodroma markhami''), a seabird species found in Chile and Colombia * ...

Don Cousens W. Donald Cousens (20 July 1938 – 23 February 2017) was a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1981 to 1994, and briefly served as a cabinet minister in the gove ...

Nepean Nepean may refer to: Places Australia *Nepean Bay, a bay in South Australia, **Nepean Bay Conservation Park, a protected area in South Australia, **Nepean Bay, South Australia, a locality *Nepean Highway, Victoria *Nepean Island (Norfolk Island) ...

: Mary Pitt (

) * Newmarket:

Tom Taylor Tom Taylor (19 October 1817 – 12 July 1880) was an English dramatist, critic, biographer, public servant, and editor of ''Punch'' magazine. Taylor had a brief academic career, holding the professorship of English literature and language a ...

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Falls, ...

Wayne Thomson Wayne Thomson is a Canadian politician who previously served as the mayor of Niagara Falls.

* North Bay:

Jack Burrows Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name ...

* Oakville:

Ann Mulvale Ann Mulvale (born 1949) is a Canadian politician. She served as mayor of Oakville, Ontario for 18 years, from 1988 to 2006. Mayor of Oakville Mulvale was first elected mayor in 1988, defeating incumbent Bill Perras, after unsuccessfully running ...

Oshawa Oshawa ( , also ; 2021 population 175,383; CMA 415,311) is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately east of Downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the G ...

Nancy Diamond Nancy Diamond (1941 – February 12, 2017) was a municipal politician in Ontario, Canada, who served as mayor of Oshawa from 1991 to 2003.

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

: Jim Watson (

) *

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire until ...

: Sylvia Sutherland * Pickering: Wayne Arthurs * Richmond Hill: Bill Bell *

Sarnia Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes where Lake Huron fl ...

: Mike Bradley * Sault Ste. Marie:

Steve Butland Steve Butland (born March 26, 1941) is a Canadian politician. He represented the Sault Ste. Marie electoral district in the House of Commons of Canada from 1988 to 1993 as a member of the New Democratic Party. Butland was born in Sault Ste. Ma ...

* St. Catharines: Tim Rigby (

) * Stoney Creek: Anne Bain *

Sudbury Sudbury may refer to: Places Australia * Sudbury Reef, Queensland Canada * Greater Sudbury, Ontario (official name; the city continues to be known simply as Sudbury for most purposes) ** Sudbury (electoral district), one of the city's federal e ...

: Jim Gordon (

) *

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population ...

Ken Boshcoff Ken Boshcoff (born June 20, 1949) was mayor of Thunder Bay, Ontario from 1997 to 2003 and a Canadian Member of Parliament for Thunder Bay—Rainy River from 2004 to 2008. He was elected Mayor of Thunder Bay again, on October 24, 2022. Early l ...

Timmins Timmins ( ) is a city in northeastern Ontario, Canada, located on the Mattagami River. The city is the fourth-largest city in the Northeastern Ontario region with a population of 41,145 (2021). The city's economy is based on natural resource ext ...

Vic Power Victor Felipe Pellot (November 1, 1927November 29, 2005), also known professionally as Vic Power, was a Puerto Ricans, Puerto Rican professional baseball first baseman. He played twelve seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athl ...

(

) *

Vaughan Vaughan () (2021 population 323,103) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located in the Regional Municipality of York, just north of Toronto. Vaughan was the fastest-growing municipality in Canada between 1996 and 2006 with its population increas ...

Lorna Jackson Lorna Jackson (October 25, 1935 – April 5, 2002) was a local politician in Vaughan for 28 years. During her career, she served as both a local and a regional councillor, as well as serving as the Mayor of Vaughan for 20 years. She died w ...

Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, a battle on 18 June 1815 in which Napoleon met his final defeat * Waterloo, Belgium, where the battle took place. Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Antarctica *King George Island (S ...

Joan McKinnon Joan may refer to: People and fictional characters *Joan (given name), including a list of women, men and fictional characters *:Joan of Arc, a French military heroine *Joan (surname) Weather events *Tropical Storm Joan (disambiguation), multiple ...

Welland Welland is a city in the Regional Municipality of Niagara in Southern Ontario, Canada. As of 2021, it had a population of 55,750. The city is in the centre of Niagara and located within a half-hour driving distance to Niagara Falls, Niagara-o ...

: Dick Reuter *

Whitby Whitby is a seaside town, port and civil parish in the Scarborough borough of North Yorkshire, England. Situated on the east coast of Yorkshire at the mouth of the River Esk, Whitby has a maritime, mineral and tourist heritage. Its East Clif ...

: Marcel Brunelle *

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

: Mike Hurst (

)

Elected regional chairs

* Hamilton–Wentworth:

Terry Cooke Terence John Cooke (born 5 August 1976) is an English former professional association football, footballer and youth team coach of the Denver Kickers. As a player he was a midfielder from 1994 to 2011. Born in Marston Green, he began his car ...

* Ottawa–Carleton:

Bob Chiarelli Robert Chiarelli (born September 24, 1941) is a Canadian politician. He was a Liberal member in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario who served from 1987 to 1997 and again from 2010 to 2018 who represented the ridings of Ottawa West and Ottawa W ...

(

) *

: Peter Wong *

: Ken Seiling

Results

Lakefield

''Source: Bill Hodgins, "Battle on for Lakefield pair," ''Peterborough Examiner'', 6 November 2000, B3.''

References

{{Ontario elections Ontario municipal elections