Mayor Watson seeks fourth term in 2018

By Caroline O’Neill

Mayor Jim Watson has officially thrown his hat into Ottawa’s mayoral race – again.

Watson, who is currently in his third term as mayor of our nation’s capital, posted a lengthy social media statement March 9 saying he intends to focus on initiatives like the Central Library and the development of the Rockliffe Air Base should he be re-elected.

“The future will hold a number of major city building projects – ideas that need a leader with a track record of getting things done,” he said in a Facebook post.

After serving Ottawa as a city councillor since 1991, Watson was first elected mayor in 1997. He transitioned to provincial politics after being elected the MPP for Ottawa West-Nepean in 2003. He held positions as Minister of Health Promotion and Minister of Municipal Affairs before his second term as mayor in 2010.

In January, Watson topped the list of the most popular mayors from Canada’s ten largest cities, beating out social media sensation Naheed Nenshi, the mayor of Calgary.

With the election slated for October 2018, Watson’s announcement leaves more than a year for other candidates to enter the race. For now, he remains uncontested.