The final campaign expenses reports are in for Chatham-Kent's 2018 municipal election.
While some candidates failed to disclose their spending or fundraising totals before the deadline, the papers that were filed show some of the biggest spenders still came away empty-handed.
When it comes to mayoral candidates, five of the six candidates filed their papers ahead of the March 29 deadline. Darrin Canniff, Alysson Storey, Robert Salvatore Powers, Harold Atkinson, and Allan Robert Traylor all submitted theirs. However, three-term CK mayor Randy Hope failed to send his in on time, meaning he will not be eligible to run for office in the 2022 municipal election.
The spending limit for mayoral candidates is capped at a little over $73,000 and while no one came close to that, candidates did still rack up thousands of dollars in campaign expenses.
Canniff spent the most at $60,453.70, which was mostly raised through third-party contributions and spent on advertising, flyers, signage and social media.
Canniff was followed by runner-up Alysson Storey who received 9,255 votes and spent just shy of $41,500 on her campaign. Most of that was money was raised through third-party contributions and spent on advertising, brochures, and signs.
Atkinson, who finished fourth in the mayoral race, spent a total of 1,282.75 on his campaign. Fifth place finisher Robert Salvatore Powers, who only received 351 votes, spent a little over $4,600 -- mostly out of his own pocket.
Allan Robert Traylor, who came in last place with 170 votes, didn't end up spending a single penny on his campaign. Traylor's expense filing shows he did not accept any contributions or incur any expenses.
When it comes to the candidates for Chatham-Kent's councillor positions, spending more money certainly didn't equate to receiving more votes.
Unsuccessful Ward 2 (South Kent) candidate Henry Svec led the way among councillor candidates across the wards by spending just under $8,500 on his campaign -- he finished sixth in votes in a ward where three candidates were to be selected.
Ward 6 (Chatham) councillor Doug Sulman, a long-time member of Chatham-Kent council, came second in spending at around $8,370. He was followed by unsuccessful Ward 6 candidate Larry Vellinga, whose campaign expenses totalled just over $8,200 -- Vellinga finished in seventh place in Ward 6, just 55 votes out of the final spot.
By contrast, several of the candidates who spent the least were still successful.
Returning Ward 4 (North Kent) councillor Joe Faas spent just $443.40 on his campaign, but still finished first in votes in his ward. His expenses were the lowest of all candidates across Chatham-Kent -- with the exception of several candidates who said they did not incur any expenses.
Successful first-time Ward 6 candidate Amy Finn was among the lowest spenders with her declared expenses totalling just over $1,200. Another successful Ward 6 councillor, Marjorie Crew, was among the lowest spenders with expenses totalling $2,415 -- she finished as the top candidate in that ward with 7,589 votes.
You can find all of the expense filings by clicking here.
