Ontario · Municipality of Collingwood

How to run for Mayor in Collingwood

A plain-English guide to the 2026 cycle — eligibility, deadlines, paperwork, and key local contacts for mayor candidates in Collingwood, Ontario.

Election day: Monday, October 26, 2026
Population (2021)
24,811
Head of council
1 Mayor
Term
4 years
Wards
None

Step 1

Are you eligible?

On the day you file your nomination paper for mayor in Collingwood, you must be:

  • A Canadian citizen.
  • At least 18 years old.
  • A resident of Collingwood, OR a non-resident owner or tenant of land in Collingwood (or the spouse of one).
  • Not legally disqualified from running.
Common disqualifications include sitting judges, sitting MPs / Senators / MPPs (must resign before filing), municipal employees (must take an unpaid leave or resign), and people serving a sentence in a penal institution.

Step 2

What does the mayor do?

The Mayor is the head of council in Collingwood — chairs council meetings, is the public face of the city, and votes alongside councillors on by-laws, the annual budget, and major staffing decisions.

Simcoe County. Mayor and Deputy Mayor both sit on County Council.

RoleSeatsTermNotes
Mayor14 yrsAt-large; sits on Simcoe County Council
Deputy Mayor14 yrsAt-large; sits on Simcoe County Council

Step 3

The nomination process

Filing happens at the City Clerk, in person during regular office hours and on nomination day until 2:00 PM. You'll need to bring:

  • Nomination paper, signed in the presence of the clerk or a commissioner of oaths.
  • 25 endorsement signatures from eligible electors of Collingwood.Municipalities with fewer than 4,000 eligible electors are exempt from the signature requirement.
  • Government-issued photo ID showing your name and qualifying address.
  • Filing fee: $200. Refundable in full if you file your campaign financial statement on time.

Where to file

Town of Collingwood Clerk's Office, 97 Hurontario Street, Collingwood ON L9Y 3Z5. Filing in person, by appointment.

Step 4

Key dates — 2026 cycle

DateEvent
May 1, 12:30 p.m.Nomination period opens
Aug 21, 6:00 p.m.Nomination period closes (last day to file)
October 26, 2026Election day
November 15, 2026New term of council begins
March 27, 2027Campaign financial statement due

Missing the financial-statement deadline can trigger automatic disqualification from running in the next cycle and forfeiture of your filing fee.

Step 5

Campaign finance

Collingwood runs under Ontario's Municipal Elections Act, 1996. The headline numbers for the 2026 cycle:

Per-individual contribution
$1,200
max from any one person to your campaign
Aggregate / additional rules
$5,000
across all candidates in the same municipality
Self + spouse contribution
lesser of $7,500 + $0.20 × eligible electors, or $25,000
combined cap
Spending limit
$7,500 + $0.85 per eligible elector
the City Clerk issues your written limit after nominations close
Corporate and union donations are banned. Cash gifts of $25 or less generally don't need to be tracked individually; anything more must be by cheque, debit, credit, money order, or e-transfer that traces to the contributor.

Local

Specific to Collingwood

  • Like Wasaga Beach, Collingwood elects all 9 councillors at-large. Town-wide campaigns mean higher spending limits per seat than ward systems of similar size.
  • The Town has been through a high-profile judicial inquiry (the "Collingwood Judicial Inquiry," reported by Justice Frank Marrocco in 2020) into the 2012 sale of OurPower / Collus utility shares. Candidates should expect questions about transparency, procurement, and integrity policies adopted in response.
  • Strong-mayor powers do not apply to Collingwood (not on the designated list).
  • Council representation review is a periodic discussion item — the Deputy Mayor publicly raised reopening governance talks in late 2024/2025; verify the 2026 by-law before assuming the at-large model is final.

Ballot

Other roles on the same ballot

Voters in Collingwood also choose:

  • Councillor — At-large
  • English Public Trustee (SCDSB) — Simcoe County DSB
  • English Catholic Trustee (SMCDSB) — Simcoe Muskoka Catholic DSB
  • French Public Trustee (Viamonde) — CS Viamonde
  • French Catholic Trustee (MonAvenir) — CSC MonAvenir

Sources

Official resources

Related guides

Also running in Collingwood?

Considering a different office? We have plain-English guides for every position on the Collingwood ballot:

This page is a plain-English summary, not legal advice. Always confirm details with the City Clerk and the most recent provincial candidate guide before filing. Last reviewed 2026-05-01.

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