Calgary Mayoral Candidate Sonya Sharp Asks for Recount After Being Defeated by Fewer Than 600 Votes

Then-Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek, left, city Sonya Sharp - Councillor, centre, and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith pose for photos after turning the sod on the new Calgary Flames arena in Calgary, July 22, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Calgary mayoral candidate Sonya Sharp has announced plans to request a recount of the ballots cast in the city’s Oct. 20 election after she lost by less than 600 votes to former city councillor Jeromy Farkas.

The unofficial results from Elections Calgary as of Oct. 22 indicate Farkas won by just 583 ballots over incumbent city Councillor Sharp, who received 90,488 votes compared to his 91,071.

Sharp announced in an Oct. 21 statement her plan to apply for a recount under provincial law. A recount request may be made if election results fall within half a percentage point of the total ballots cast for the mayoral election. In this instance, that difference is roughly 0.16 percent of the total 348,650 ballots that were cast.

“I believe it is appropriate to request the chief returning officer undertake a recount of the ballots to ensure the accuracy of the election outcome,” Sharp said in the statement. “Given the razor-thin margin of victory in this election, it makes ample sense to review and double-check that appropriate processes were followed, and the count is accurate.”

Sharp underscored that her recount request is not a criticism of election workers, who she said faced a challenging day due to the new procedures mandated by legislation, including hand-counting ballots into the early hours of the morning.

“Mistakes can occur during stressful situations,” she added. “I am happy to accept the outcome of this review, win or lose, because the final word of our citizens is what matters most in local government.”

Aside from counting ballots by hand, another new feature of the 2025 elections was the introduction of municipal political parties in Calgary and Edmonton. The change was implemented after the UCP government introduced legislation last year to enable mayoral and council candidates in the two cities to affiliate with a local political party.

Sharp headed the Communities First political party while Farkas and Gondek both opted to run as independents.

Sharp, a former city employee, said she will not issue any further statements or speak to the media until the recount is completed.

Incumbent Loses Seat

Calgary’s Oct. 20 election also saw Farkas unseat incumbent Mayor Jyoti Gondek. Gondek garnered 71,397 votes, putting her in third place behind Farkas and Sharp.

If his win holds, it will be a political comeback of sorts for Farkas, who ran and lost against Gondek in the 2021 mayoral race after serving as the councillor for Ward 11 from 2017 to 2021. It will also make him the first candidate to unseat an incumbent mayor since 1980.

Farkas told reporters outside city hall on Oct. 21 he had spoken to Gondek to thank her for her service to the city.

“She’s given so much to Calgary, and I look forward to building on that work,” Farkas said. “At the end of the day, we all love this city, and that’s what unites us.”

His brief press conference was given prior to Sharp’s announcement. The Epoch Times contacted Farkas for comment on Sharp’s recount request plans but did not hear back by publication time.

The Elections Calgary website says an application for a recount can only be made by the candidate with the second highest number of votes or the official agent of that candidate.

That request must be made within 72 hours after the official results are announced or posted.

Elections Calgary posted unofficial results of the mayoral race from election day voting stations just before midnight but continued to update the results on Oct. 21 as the counting of advance and mail-in ballots progressed.

The city’s elections office has said it will post official election results at noon on Oct. 24.