The Pulse: Oct. 21, 2025

UPDATE (Oct. 21, 10:00pm): Andrew Knack is set to become Edmonton's 37th mayor, leading a council that will have many of the same people he served with previously, as well as a few members of the Better Edmonton party. Read the latest here

What Taproot knows about Edmonton's 2025 election so far is that voter turnout was just more than 30%, the lowest since 2007, that some voters waited until after 10pm to cast their ballots, and that as of 1:20am on Oct. 21, about 54,000 votes had come through.

Those results, preliminary as they are, show Andrew Knack leading in the race for mayor, that incumbents in council races are doing far better than some pundits expected, and that party-affiliated candidates are struggling to make headway.

The City of Edmonton said it would open no new ballot boxes after midnight on Oct. 20 and would stop hand-counting ballots at 1am on Oct. 21. It said counts will resume at 9am Tuesday, and that an unofficial result is expected before Oct. 22.

Here's a quick glimpse of the results so far.

Mayor

The race for mayor saw the first unofficial results come into Taproot's results dashboard just before 10:30pm. As Taproot went to press, the race appeared to be between Andrew Knack and Tim Cartmell, with Knack holding a rougly 4,900-vote advantage, with 48 of 236 polls reporting.

Both Knack, at 37.7%, and Cartmell, at 28.7%, had a significant lead over Michael Walters in third at 11.8%, with Omar Mohammad in fourth place at 10.8%. Rahim Jaffer was a distant fifth at 4.5%.

The race for mayor had 13 total candidates, including Paul Bakhmut, Ronald Stewart Billingsley, Jr, Tony Caterina, Abdul Malik Chukwudi, Vanessa Denman, Andy Andrzej Gudanowski, Utha Nadauk, and Olney Tugwell.

• Edmonton's municipal election polling stations closed more than two hours late on Oct. 20, after voters experienced lengthy wait times, some exceeding an hour, across Edmonton, Red Deer, and Wood Buffalo. Voters cited safe transit, supportive housing, and addressing homelessness as key issues. Mayoral candidate Michael Walters expressed concern that excessively long lines might deter voters. By midnight, no results were available for Edmonton's mayoral, city council, and school trustee races; only 11% of mayoral polls reported, with Andrew Knack leading at 34%. These delays resulted from new provincial legislation, Bill 20, which increased steps for voters and mandated hand-counting ballots. The City of Edmonton cited staff shortages. Dan Williams, the minister of municipal affairs, said municipalities had "ample" time to prepare for the changes. Edmonton's voter turnout reached 30.27%, the lowest since 2007.
• A power outage closed a polling station at St. Timothy Catholic Elementary School in north Edmonton's Ward Anirniq on Oct. 20. Edmonton Elections directed voters to cast their ballots at Caernarvon School, located a few blocks away, while EPCOR assessed the power situation.
• Municipal election results for central and northern Alberta began trickling in on Oct. 20. Morinville saw Simon Boersma acclaimed as mayor for a second term. Maurice St. Denis and Jenn Anheliger will return as councillors, joined by new councillors Nathan Himschoot, Lisa Parenteau, Daryn Duliba, and Jayson Wood. Unofficially, Red Deer County elected Brent Ramsay as mayor. Richard Ireland was acclaimed mayor in Jasper, with Wendy Hall, Ralph Melnyk, Kathleen Waxer, Danny Frechette, Kable Kongsrud, and Laurie Rodger elected as councillors. Reeve Terry Ungarian was re-elected in the County of Northern Lights.
• Low-income Edmonton families face multi-year waits for affordable housing, with the Civida waitlist now more than 10,000 applicants, up from 7,260 in March 2023. Some large families wait four to five years for placements, as Civida, the city's largest affordable housing provider, lacks a sufficient number of larger units. Families struggle to afford rent, as rent costs in the Edmonton census metropolitan area increased nearly 26% between October 2021 and August 2025. Civida is constructing a 132-unit building in the Keheewin neighbourhood, including 20 community housing spaces, slated for 2027 completion, with two more planned in 2026.
• Roughly 100 people gathered outside the Edmonton courthouse on Oct. 20, demanding justice for 14-year-old Indigenous teen Samuel Bird. Bryan Farrell, 38, faces second-degree murder charges after Samuel, who went missing June 1, was found dead in a forested rural area west of Edmonton. Farrell, who faces numerous other charges in connection with the case, did not appear in court, and his case was adjourned until Nov. 10. Samuel's mother, Alanna Bird, expressed gratitude for "Samuel's Warriors," who rallied against bail being granted for Farrell.
• Alberta opened Phase 2 of its influenza and COVID-19 immunization program on Oct. 20, allowing more Albertans to book shots at pharmacies or public health centres. Phase 1 began Sept. 29, prioritizing high-risk groups like seniors in care, pregnant people, immunocompromised individuals, and healthcare workers, administering 39,764 influenza vaccines. This year, Alberta introduced pre-orders and a cost of approximately $100 for COVID-19 shots for those not considered high-risk. Additionally, Alberta quietly launched pre-orders for the 2026 to 2027 vaccine season on Sept. 29, with a Dec. 15 closing date, without a public announcement.
• With Alberta's fall legislative session set to begin Oct. 23, Government House Leader Joseph Schow outlined the government's priorities, including potential back-to-work legislation to end the teachers' strike, which began Oct. 6. A spokesperson for the Alberta Teachers' Association said it would consider its legal options to challenge such legislation. The government also plans legislation to limit local election ballots, prevent "undue discipline" for professionals, prohibit Canadian work experience requirements, and establish the Alberta Sheriffs Police Service. Premier Danielle Smith also confirmed potential use of the notwithstanding clause to defend transgender restrictions her government introduced in 2024. The Opposition NDP criticized the plans as missing the mark and not in line with Albertans' priorities.

Correction: This file has been updated to correct information about the role the Canada Post strike played in delays at election stations.

Here are some events happening today in the Edmonton area.

• Agricultural Waste Round Up starting at 9am at The Pointe Agricultural Centre
• SBW 2025: Small Business, Big Stories - Edmonton starting at 4pm at The Bell in Scona
• An Evening of Inspiration, Learning, & Impact starting at 5pm at Edmonton Convention Centre
• Modern Luxuria Awards of Excellence starting at 6pm at Lexus of Edmonton
• Sketch Night starting at 6pm at The Carrot Community Arts Coffeehouse
• Living Well for the Older Adult starting at 6pm at Devon Community Centre
• Edmonton Women in Tech Meetup: Create and Connect starting at 6pm at Color Cafe (West Edmonton Mall)
• Book Talk: Darcie D'Angelo starting at 7pm at Audreys Books
• Tuesday Jam Hosted by Holly Sangster Quartet starting at 8pm at Yardbird Suite

And here are some upcoming events to keep in mind:

• Oct. 29: Ethics in Practice: Incorporating Indigenous perspectives in research design at NorQuest College
• Nov. 7: State of the Economy Luncheon at JW Marriott (Edmonton ICE District)
• Nov. 8: Community Code Days 2025: Hackathon online

Visit the beta version of the Taproot Edmonton Calendar for many more events in the Edmonton region.

Test your crossword prowess and deploy a little of your Edmonton knowledge. Complete the puzzle.

If you'd like to go back and do a puzzle you missed, here's the archive.