Former Ward 11 councillor Jeromy Farkas has edged out Communities First leader Sonya Sharp by less than a percentage point, according to unofficial results of the 2025 Calgary mayoral election.
Following a neck-and-neck race with Sharp overnight, results released by the city say Farkas received 91,065 votes, while Sharp has 90,480.
Fewer than 600 votes separate the two frontrunners. Under provincial law, if the results are within half a percentage point of the total number of ballots cast for mayor, a recount may be requested. In this case, that difference is approximately 0.17 per cent of the total 348,626 ballots cast, meaning Sharp is eligible to apply for a recount.
If the numbers hold, Farkas will be Calgary’s 38th mayor. He’ll also be the first to unseat an incumbent mayor since 1980.
“Thank you to everyone who believed in me, who gave your time, your voice, and your trust. Thank you,” Farkas told a crowd of supporters at Festival Hall, the home of the Calgary Folk Festival in Calgary’s Inglewood neighbourhood, shortly before midnight and before final results were known.
Marked by complaints of long lineups, this year’s election is also shaping up to see the lowest voter turnout in years. Final unofficial voter turnout numbers will be provided Tuesday evening.
Farkas was the runner-up in the 2021 election, losing to Jyoti Gondek. Though Farkas may come out on top this time around, fewer Calgarians supported him in this election than in 2021, when he received 116,698 votes to Gondek’s 176,344.
In taking a second run at the mayor’s chair, the former councillor said he was running in opposition to what he saw as an out-of-touch council that had lost its way on jobs, housing and safety.
He decided to run as an independent candidate in the first municipal election that allowed party affiliations on the ballot at the local level.
Sharp, another former councillor and mayoral candidate with the Communities First political party, ran a campaign focused on public safety and infrastructure, promising to hire 500 more police officers.
Sonya Sharp, running with the Communities First political party, spoke to supporters late Monday evening. (Helen Pike/CBC)
Gondek, like Farkas, eschewed the party system but came in third, becoming the first incumbent mayor since 1980 to lose an election.
Farkas will return to council in his new role alongside at least eight new councillors, given how many incumbents are not running this election. The full make-up of the new council won’t be known until later on Tuesday, as the count is being done by hand and not by electronic tabulator. The provincial government banned the use of electronic vote tabulators in 2024.
Farkas swore off ‘ideological jackassery’
Farkas, who grew up in southeast Calgary in the community of Dover, graduated from the University of Calgary with a political science degree and is a former senior fellow at the Manning Centre. In 2017, he was elected as councillor for Ward 11, becoming one of Calgary’s youngest city councillors. On council, he quickly drew kudos from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, but also frequently butted heads with his fellow members.
After losing the 2021 election, Farkas turned his focus to the non-profit sector, first hiking the 4,270-kilometre Pacific Crest Trail to raise funds for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Calgary and Area. As he neared the end of that hike, he told Daybreak Alberta in 2022 that his time on the road had provided him time to reflect.
“I thought that I understood what teamwork was. And in hindsight, I really didn’t. Not until you’re climbing an ice wall hand in hand with somebody beside you. If they fall, you fall. And if you fall, they fall,” he said.
“It doesn’t click until you’re in situations like that. And I think it played out in some of my political career. Looking back, in hindsight, I realize there’s quite a bit of ideological jackassery that just has no place out here on the trail.”
Jeromy Farkas spoke to supporters late Monday evening at Festival Hall, the home of the Calgary Folk Festival in Calgary’s Inglewood neighbourhood. (Acton Clarkin/CBC)
After that hike, he went on to serve as CEO the Glenbow Ranch Park Foundation, telling CBC News earlier this year that that job had taught him how to build bridges.
“I’ve helped bring together ranchers and environmentalists, the business and the grassroots, conservatives and progressives — to be able to fight for and protect what matters most,” he said.
His apparent change-of-heart on various issues was a point of contention amongst his fellow candidates for the mayors’ chair. During a recent debate hosted by CBC Calgary, Jeff Davison, who placed fourth in Monday’s election, charged Farkas with flip-flopping on “everything from city spending on the arts to downtown revitalization.”
“Leadership means standing firm in your convictions, yet your track record shows repeated reversals on major city issues,” Davison said. “How can Calgarians trust your judgment when your positions change?”
“Leadership means doing better when you know better,” Farkas said in response. “When the facts change, as they have in the last 10 years on various issues, I’m willing to change my mind.”
Gondek thanks supporters
Gondek, who defeated 26 challengers in 2021 to become the first female mayor in the city’s history, conceded the 2025 mayoral race at a campaign party at the Palomino Smokehouse in Calgary shortly before midnight Monday.
“This didn’t end up the way that we had all hoped, but I’m standing here very proud of what we have built together, and I’m profoundly grateful for the privilege of having served this incredible city, the best city in the world,” Gondek told supporters.
WATCH | Jyoti Gondek’s concession speech:
Jyoti Gondek concedes in Calgary’s mayor race
After serving just one term, incumbent mayoral candidate Jyoti Gondek says she will say ‘congratulations to the winner and their team once we have a result’ on Tuesday.
Brian Thiessen, a lawyer and former chair of the Calgary Police Commission, placed fifth in the race for mayor. He was the mayoral candidate with The Calgary Party.
In a statement, Thiessen wrote that while the results weren’t what he had hoped for, the party had “built something real: a movement of citizens who believe city hall must put Calgarians first.”
“The work doesn’t stop here,” Thiessen added. “Our team will keep pushing for the same ideas we championed throughout this campaign, including safer communities, housing, and a city hall that listens.”
Successful city councillor candidates are expected Tuesday afternoon while ballots for trustee are expected later Tuesday.
Follow results — as they roll in — in the races for city council and school trustee here.