Kingston's mayor heading back to city hall after unsuccessful election bid for Conservatives

It's back to city hall for Kingston Mayor Bryan Paterson.

The municipal politician took an unpaid leave from his seat at the head of the council horseshoe to run for the Conservatives in the federal election, but failed to unseat longtime Liberal MP Mark Gerretsen.

Monday night's unsuccessful bid to represent Kingston and the Islands marked the first election Paterson has ever lost.

"I had a lot of people at the door tell me that they weren't going to vote for me because they wanted me to stay as mayor," he said to reporters after the votes were counted. "I respect that. I respect the judgment of the community."

Paterson said he wouldn't waste any time getting back to the city's top job, with a "couple of meetings" already scheduled for Tuesday.

"I'm not going to go to city hall ... dejected and defeated and depressed," he told supporters.

"No, not at all. I'm actually going to walk back into city hall tomorrow with a new vigor, a new passion, a new energy, because I've seen face to face just how important it is that we keep fighting for the issues that we've talked about in this campaign."

Paterson was wooed into running by local Conservatives who created a "We Choose Bryan" campaign and spent months encouraging him to throw his hat in the ring.

Liberals scored support from NDP voters

While announcing his intention to seek the party's nomination, the mayor spoke about a need for change and promised to "build a big blue tent" where all are welcome.

Instead, it appears it was Gerretsen and the Liberals who managed to capitalize on support from voters who might not have backed their party in the past, securing an estimated 63 per cent of the vote.

"There are a lot of people in our riding who typically would have voted NDP that chose to vote for me this time," Gerretsen said.

"I'm fully aware of that, and I am very humbled by the fact that they put their faith in me, and it is something that weighs on me, and I know that I have to bring that voice to Ottawa in what I do."

Gerretsen said his local priorities include finding space for more affordable housing in the riding and ensuring a permanent replacement for the LaSalle Causeway bridge in a "timely fashion" that meets the needs of residents who rely on it.

Once a mayor of Kingston himself, Gerretsen has represented the area as MP since 2015 — part of a long line of Liberals who have held onto the seat since the late 1980s. He described the riding as a "progressive stronghold" after securing his fourth straight win.

With that voting record in mind, Paterson referred to himself as an "underdog" while campaigning, despite his name recognition and decade as Kingston's current mayor.

Local Conservatives including Countryside district Coun. Gary Oosterhof, who ran for the party in 2021, had hoped Paterson's track record and profile might finally break the Liberal's streak.

Following yet another loss, he said the party will have to "reflect" on what it's going to take to turn the riding blue.

"I don't know what kind of decline is required to say there's a problem here, but there is a problem," Oosterhof said.

Mayor glad he 'made the effort'

Paterson said he "absolutely" believes a Conservative could win in the riding, but laughed when asked on election night if he'd consider running again.

While Paterson was competing for the MP's seat, the city's deputy mayors took turns covering his duties including chairing council meetings.

In explaining his decision to run, the mayor said he'd been frustrated by the fact so many of the problems facing the community are national issues requiring solutions from the federal level.

While he's not heading to the House of Commons himself, Paterson said he's looking forward to working with Gerretsen and has no regrets.

"It feels right, because I made the effort," he explained. "For community members that might come to me and say, 'Why haven't you done more as mayor?' I can tell them that, you know what? I threw my hat in the ring for MP and the community chose to go in a different direction."