Former Cambridge Member of Provincial Parliament Belinda Karahalios has registered a bid to represent Ward 3 in the city's upcoming municipal election, joining four other candidates in the race to replace longtime Cambridge councillor Mike Mann, who officially announced his retirement from local politics last week.
Arguably the most high profile candidate of the pack, Karahalios filed her papers Wednesday.
She is in the running for the Ward 3 council seat against Nate Whalen, Corey Kimpson, Tracy Hipel and Michelle Braniff, who comes to the race after running as the Green candidate for Member of Parliament in the Cambridge riding in last fall's federal election.
Kimpson has been in the news of late in an effort to get around the region's land-use rules and reopen Flag Raiders, the paintball business she runs with her brother Joe on Kossuth Road.
Karahalios' profile was raised in 2020 after she was ousted from Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservative caucus for voting against Bill 125, which was designed to extend provincial powers during the pandemic.
As the city's independent representative at Queen's Park, Karahalios challenged provincial restrictions during the pandemic, gaining support locally from many parents who objected to provincial measures that prevented access to city facilities without proof of vaccination.
She went on to champion the Blair Engaged group's efforts to stop a mega warehouse from being built and was critical of the city's lack of transparency over that issue.
CambridgeToday will provide a full rundown of municipal and school board trustee candidates once nominations close this Friday.
Coun. Nicholas Ermeta in Ward 8 remains the only incumbent running unopposed in the Oct. 24 municipal election. Advance voting in the election can happen as early as Sept. 24.
