Incumbent councillors sent packing across Winnipeg as city votes for change
Devi Sharma, Ross Eadie, Russ Wyatt, Shawn Dobson out at city hall
Winnipeg residents voted to transform their city council in Wednesday's election, sending four incumbents packing and electing a historic nine first-time councillors to represent them at city hall.
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residents → send → hall
While a substantial turnover was expected, with one-third of council's 15 incumbents not seeking re-election, the ousting of several of its longest-serving members means more than half those now going to city hall will be first-time councillors.
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those → expect → hall
It's the biggest turnover Winnipeg's council has seen since the 1992 election, when the city went down to its current 15 wards.
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city → see → wards
The oustings included Old Kildonan councillor Devi Sharma, who also served as council's Speaker, and longtime Transcona representative Russ Wyatt, whose re-election campaign rolled out under a cloud of sexual assault charges.
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campaign → include → charges
St. James incumbent Shawn Dobson was also voted out, in a political career that has now seen him run in seven elections over the past 24 years.
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him → vote → years
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And Ross Eadie, who represented north Winnipeg's Mynarski ward for more than a decade, lost his job after a second campaign from 2022 challenger Natalie Smith saw her eke out a victory Wednesday night.
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her → feel → victory
Following her win, Smith said while she knew it would be a close race, she didn't imagine she'd wrest the seat away from Eadie by a margin of a little over 100 votes, according to results from the city.
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she → follow → city
Mynarski councillor-elect Natalie Smith finished second to incumbent Ross Eadie in the 2022 election.
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Smith → finish → election
But I also know there's lots of work.
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I → know → work
And I know the people of Mynarski have entrusted me, and so I have to follow through on a lot of the promises that I've made," Smith said after the results came in Wednesday.
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results → know → that
"It took a second try, but to [win is] … pretty remarkable.
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It → take → try
I'm a politics nerd, so I know that it's not an easy win, by any means.
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it → know → means
But at the end of the day, you know, folks and residents here wanted something different."
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folks → know → something
Smith describes herself on her campaign website as a community organizer born and raised in Steinbach, Man., who moved to Winnipeg for university.
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who → describe → university
She's previously campaigned for the U-Pass transit referendum for Winnipeg-based universities and to protect the Lemay Forest, her website says, and has worked at the Women’s Health Clinic, the North End Community Renewal Corporation and the Wilderness Committee.
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website → campaign → Clinic
"I hope that having some new voices on city council, with a lot of stronger organizing, means that we can get more done for the city, and really push us ahead in a very progressive way," Smith said.
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Smith → hope → way
Old challengers, new faces
That hunger for change is one that appears to have been felt in wards across the city — including St. James, where retired Bell MTS manager Kelly Ryback beat incumbent Dobson.
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Ryback → appear → Dobson
Much like Smith and Eadie, Ryback was able to come out on top after giving it a second try, following a loss to Dobson in the 2022 election.
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Ryback → come → election
Dobson lost his St. James seat on Wednesday night.
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Dobson → lose → night
Since retiring six years ago, Ryback has appeared at council as a delegate on a number of occasions, arguing against Winnipeg Transit's route overhaul and the sale of the John Blumberg golf course, a property the city owns within the rural municipality of Headingley.
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city → retire → Headingley
Dobson lost the seat after representing St. James for one term.
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Dobson → lose → term
He previously served from 2014 to 2018 as the councillor for St. Charles, which was dissolved as part of ward boundary changes that created the new jurisdiction of Waverley West.
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that → serve → West
Meanwhile, Russ Wyatt — one of the longest-serving current members of Winnipeg city council going into election night — lost his Transcona seat at city hall as he faces criminal charges.
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he → serve → charges
Russ Wyatt with supporters at Dal's Restaurant and Lounge in Transcona on Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, after the incumbent came in a distant fourth place to political rookie Lora Meseman.
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incumbent → come → Meseman
Community centre executive Lora Meseman was able to take the seat from the longtime councillor in her first bid for political office.
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Meseman → take → office
The ousting comes as Wyatt faces charges including sexual assault, which police have said involve two men in separate alleged incidents from 2023 and 2025.
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police → come → 2023
Wyatt denies the allegations, which have not been proven, and plans to defend himself in court.
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which → deny → court
Lora Meseman took the Transcona council seat from incumbent Wyatt on Wednesday night.
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Meseman → take → night
Wyatt was first elected in 2002.
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Wyatt → elect → 2002
He chose not to run in 2018 — following a previous charge of sexual assault, which was later dropped — before returning to council in 2022.
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which → choose → 2022
And Devi Sharma, the longtime councillor for north Winnipeg's Old Kildonan ward, has been ousted from her role by former school trustee Greg McFarlane.
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Sharma → oust → McFarlane
McFarlane served as a trustee with the Seven Oaks School Division for more than a decade.
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McFarlane → serve → decade
Sharma was first elected to represent Old Kildonan in 2010, when she became Winnipeg's first Indo-Canadian councillor.
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she → elect → 2010
She's also the first woman to serve as Speaker at city hall — a role she took on in her first term in office.
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she → serve → office
Greg McFarlane previously served as a trustee in the Seven Oaks School Division.
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McFarlane → serve → Division
Wednesday's results also bring Winnipeg's city council closer to gender parity.
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results → bring → parity
Eight of the 15 councillors are men and seven are women, compared to nine and six before the election.
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seven → compare → election
Six councillors hung on to their spots: Evan Duncan (Charleswood-Tuxedo-Westwood), Cindy Gilroy (Daniel McIntyre), Emma Durand-Wood (Elmwood-East Kildonan), Jeff Browaty (North Kildonan), Vivian Santos (Point Douglas) and Matt Allard (St. Boniface).
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councillors → hang → spots
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