The city of Ottawa, Canada held municipal elections on November 12, 1991.
Right wing Britannia Ward councillor Jacquelin Holzman defeated left wing St. George's councillor Nancy Smith and mayor Marc Laviolette. Holzman defeated Smith by just 3,022 votes. She ran on a platform to "keep a lid on city taxes".
Despite the eventual closeness of the result, and the polarization of the candidates, pundits lamented that the electorate was not interested in the election, as the candidates had not inspired the voters who were more concerned with "national issues like the constitution and the economy".
After the election, Liberal MP Mac Harb (who supported Holzman) admitted to "quietly encourag[ing]" Laviolette to enter the race to split the vote, because he "couldn't stomach (the thought of) Smith's left wing social agenda" winning.
Mayor.
Results by ward.
Holzman's victory was propelled by winning the city's suburban wards, with her best ward being Richmond, which she had represented on council. Smith won the city's four urban wards, doing her best in St. George's, which she had represented on council. Laviolette won the city's two Francophone-influenced eastern wards.
References.
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