Ten candidates in last year’s municipal election in Greater Sudbury have been barred from putting their names forward again in 2026, including three people vying for the mayor’s seat.
A city spokesperson clarified to Sudbury.com that all candidates in a “default” position for failing to file paperwork by the final deadline of April 28 are “barred from running.”
Mayoral candidates Brian Bigger, Devin Labranche, and Don Gravelle are included in this list.
Labranche and Gravelle are political newcomers, while Bigger was the incumbent candidate. He stepped down from the race a few weeks prior to election day, citing family reasons, though his name still appeared on the ballot because he dropped out after the deadline to do so.
Although Bigger filed financial statements, he did not attach an auditor’s report. Bigger told Sudbury.com this week that he allowed his account to fall into a default position because he does not intend to seek public office in 2026.
Both Labranche and Gravelle told Sudbury.com they got busy and forgot their documents, with neither candidate appearing too broken up about not being able to run next time around.
“I ran when I was 29, and the results suggest I need to grab more experience in the community,” Labranche said. “There needs to be further steps in my life in order to show confidence.”
Other candidates had more notoriety and name recognition, he said, adding that while he’s proud of his platform and the research that went into it, his campaign was lacking in some ways.
One of these things, he said, was financial backing.
Although he failed to file his financial statements, Labranche said he spent approximately $250 on his campaign for pamphlets and Facebook advertising.
Mayoral candidate Evelyn Dutrisac, by comparison, was the lead spender, at $86,285. The winning candidate, Paul Lefebvre, spent $69,311.
Gravelle told Sudbury.com his brief experience in politics wasn’t a negative thing, but that he’d given it a stab and hadn’t intended to seek election in 2026 anyway.
As for expenses, he said that although he didn’t file anything with the city, he was “well below everything, for sure.”
Other candidates in last year’s municipal election who have yet to file financial statements, and are therefore barred from running in 2026, include:
- Ward 1 candidate Mark Facendi
- Ward 4 candidate Alice Norquay
- Ward 6 candidate Scott Seguin
- Ward 7 candidate Randy Hazlette
- Ward 8 candidate Patrick Auge
- Ward 8 candidate Bill McElree
A city spokesperson noted that Ward 8 candidate Gordon Drysdale submitted his financial statement past the initial March 31 deadline and did not file the late filing fee of $500, so is also considered to be in default.
Conseil scolaire public du Grand Nord de l'Ontario - Zone 7 candidate Gouled Hassan is also in default for failing to file financial statements, so is ineligible to run in 2026.
An Elections Canada spokesperson confirmed that all candidates in the Sudbury and Nickel Belt electoral districts had filed their returns for the 2021 federal election on time (they were due Jan. 20, 2022).
The only candidate in last year’s provincial election yet to file their financial statements (due Dec. 2, 2022), is Sudbury Ontario Party candidate Jason Laface.
Laface told Sudbury.com this week that he’d recently filed his financial statements, which should appear online soon. He declined to answer further questions, blamed Sudbury.com for “trolls online,” and said we “better f*ckin’ get good lawyers” in preparation for an undefined class-action lawsuit.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.
