For up-to-date information on who is running for election in every municipality across Lunenburg County in the 2024 Municipal Election, visit Barnacle Election Central.
Correction, May 11: This article initially showed Derek Wells being elected to Chester’s District 3 in 2020. Wells was actually elected in a by-election in 2021. We have updated this page for accuracy.
Municipal councils make decisions that affect the everyday life of generations to come, but records on who actually ever served on a Nova Scotia council are not kept in order in one place.
Try to find information on who won recent local municipal elections, and the “2020 Nova Scotia municipal elections” Wikipedia page is about the best you’ll get unless you’re willing to dig deep across multiple websites and social media feeds – but it doesn’t even cover all of our local communities.
And if there’s been a few special by-elections since then? It won’t be fun to figure it all out.
So we saved you a couple hours.
To help you understand recent decisions made by voters in our communities that led to the councils we have today, The Barnacle has done the work of gathering Lunenburg County’s municipal election results from the last four years in one central, convenient location for you.
- Municipality of the District of Chester
- Municipality of the District of Lunenburg
- Town of Bridgewater
- Town of Lunenburg
- Town of Mahone Bay
Municipality of the District of Chester
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Chester is unique among South Shore municipalities for having residents not elect a Mayor. Instead, there are seven Councillors who elect a Warden amongst themselves.
In the 2020 election, two districts were acclaimed, and there were 3,689 votes cast among the remaining five districts.
Everyone who was elected in Chester in 2020 remains on Council today except Danielle Barkhouse, who was Councillor for District 3. Barkhouse became an MLA for the provincial Progressive Conservatives and vacated her council seat. In a November 2021 by-election, Derek Wells won the District 3 seat.
Municipality of the District of Chester Municipal By-Election Results – November 18, 2021
| District | Winner – Votes | Other Nominees – Votes |
|---|---|---|
| District 3 | Derek Wells – 461 | Jo-Ann Grant – 164, Annette Collicutt – 99 |
Municipality of the District of Chester Municipal Election Results – October 17, 2020
| District | Winner – Votes | Other Nominees – Votes |
|---|---|---|
| District 1 | Andre Veinotte – 418 | Marshal Hector – 337, Terri Demont – 122 |
| District 2 | Floyd Shatford – Acclaimed | N/A |
| District 3 | Danielle Barkhouse – 623 | Kerry Keddy – 140 |
| District 4 | Allen Webber (Warden) – 365 | Steven Millett – 236 |
| District 5 | Abdella Assaff – 616 | Blake Rafuse – 226 |
| District 6 | Tina Connors – Acclaimed | N/A |
| District 7 | Sharon Church – 487 | Doug Sharpham – 125 |
Municipality of the District of Lunenburg
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In the 2020 election, The Municipality of the District of Lunenburg (MODL) saw 9,084 people turn out to vote out of approximately 20,700 eligible voters, for a total turnout of 43.9 per cent.
MODL elects a Mayor who sits at large and is voted for by all voters in town.
Theya also have ten polling districts for Councillors spanning 1,759 square kilometres from inland Nova Scotia to the ocean, engulfing the municipalities of Bridgewater, Lunenburg and Mahone Bay.
Everyone who was elected in MODL in 2020 remains on Council today.
Municipality of the District of Lunenburg Municipal Election Results – October 17, 2020
| District | Winner – Votes | Other Nominees – Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Mayor | Carolyn Bolivar-Getson – 5,437 | Caleb Wheeldon – 3,563 |
| MODL District 1 | Leitha Haysom – Acclaimed | N/A |
| MODL District 2 | Martin Bell – 687 | Morgen Reinhardt – 519 |
| MODL District 3 | Wendy Oickle – 339 | Lee E. Nauss (incumbent) – 326, David Sutherland – 172 |
| MODL District 4 | Pam Hubley – 662 | Bud Webster – 320 |
| MODL District 5 | Cathy Moore – Acclaimed | N/A |
| MODL District 6 | Sandra Statton – 490 | Claudette E. Garland – 404 |
| MODL District 7 | Michelle Greek – 594 | Wade S. Carver (incumbent) – 385 |
| MODL District 8 | Kacy DeLong – Acclaimed | N/A |
| MODL District 9 | Reid Whynot – 577 | Frank Fawson – 438 |
| MODL District 10 | Chasidy Veinotte – 442 | Josh Healey – 332, Ann Westhaver – 188 |
Town of Bridgewater
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In the 2020 election, The Town of Bridgewater saw 2,504 people turn out to vote out of approximately 6,878 eligible voters, for a total turnout of 36.4 per cent.
The Town of Bridgewater elects one Mayor and six Councillors who sit at large – meaning a Councillor is not elected by people in a specific polling district, but by all voters in town.
Everyone who was elected in Bridgewater in 2020 remains on Council today.
Bridgewater Mayoral Election Results – October 17, 2020
| Position | Winner – Votes | Other Nominees – Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Mayor | David Mitchell – Acclaimed | N/A |
Bridgewater Councillor Election Results – October 17, 2020
Cheryl Fougere – 1688
Jennifer McDonald – 1502
Andrew Tanner – 1494
Stacey Colwell – 1473
Wayne Thorburne – 1401
Mike Conklin – 1272
Erin Carr – 1145
Sandra Mader – 1102
Chad Frittenburg – 1004
Eric Wade – 462
Source: Town of Bridgewater, Facebook
Town of Lunenburg
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The Town of Lunenburg had 2,021 eligible voters as of August 2023.
The Town of Lunenburg elects one Mayor and six Councillors who sit at large – meaning a Councillor is not elected by people in a specific polling district, but by all voters in town.
Lunenburg held a special by-election in August 2023 to replace its vacant Mayoral seat following the resignation of Mayor Matt Risser.
Voter turnout in the 2020 general election was 64.1 per cent. Other than Matt Risser, everyone elected in the Town of Lunenburg remains on Council today.
Lunenburg Mayoral Special By-Election Results – August 12, 2023
| Position | Winner – Votes | Other Nominees – Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Mayor | Jamie Myra – 811 | Gale Fullerton – 377 |
Lunenburg Mayoral Election Results – October 17, 2020
| Position | Winner – Votes | Other Nominees – Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Mayor | Matt Risser – 955 | John McGee – 268 |
Lunenburg Councillor Election Results – October 17, 2020
Susan Sanford – 838
Stephen Ernst – 759
Peter Mosher (incumbent) – 726
Melissa Duggan – 686
Jenni Birtles – 672
Ed Halverson – 555
Ronnie Bachman (incumbent) – 528
Kevin Corkum – 504
Theo Heffler – 379
John Barr – 369
Source: Saltwire
Town of Mahone Bay
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In the 2020 municipal election, The Town of Mahone Bay saw a total turnout of 70.3 per cent. According to Statistics Canada, the adult population of Mahone Bay in 2021 was between 910 to 950.
The Town of Mahone Bay elects one Mayor and six Councillors who sit at large – meaning a Councillor is not elected by people in a specific polling district, but by all voters in town.
Suzanne Lohnes-Croft, former Lunenburg MLA and Liberal provincial cabinet minister, won a by-election for a vacant seat (vacated by Alice Burdick) in November 2022 with 68.75 per cent of 416 votes. Other than Alice Burdick, everyone who was elected in Mahone Bay in 2020 remains on Council today.
Mahone Bay Councillor By-Election Results – November 26, 2022
| Position | Winner – Votes | Other Nominees – Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Councillor | Suzanne Lohnes-Croft – 286 | Bryan Palfreyman – 130 |
Mahone Bay Mayoral Election Results – October 17, 2020
| Position | Winner – Votes | Other Nominees – Votes |
|---|---|---|
| Mayor | David Devenne – Acclaimed | N/A |
Mahone Bay Councillor Election Results – October 17, 2020
Francis Kangata – 482
Penny Carver – 459
Kelly Wilson – 439
Joseph Maxwell Feeney – 384
Alice Burdick – 377
Richard Nowe – 352
Aaron M. Collery – 157
Source: Town of Mahone Bay
