Lambton County's long-time warden was surprised to see some of the results from the 2026 municipal election, noting there will be several new faces when the next council term begins.
Kevin Marriott, who was acclaimed as the mayor of Enniskillen Township, said out of 17 county council members, eight will be new.
"County council's going to look a lot different," he said. "It's the biggest changeover I've ever seen."
Councillors Dave Boushy, Dave Ferguson, Bev Hand, Brad Loosley, and Steve Miller had previously announced their retirement from county council at the end of this term.
However, Mike Bradley, Bill Dennis, and Doug Cook lost their seats in their respective municipal elections.
"Some change is always good. I welcome new perspectives and fresh ideas. Going forward, it's good to have an influx of new ideas and perspectives," Marriott said. "There's always some negatives to a big turnover like this with how long some people have served."
Without disclosing specific names, Marriott said there were definitely surprises on Monday.
"It's obvious that people's home municipalities... some areas were wanting change," Marriott said. "I guess it's always a surprise when there's that much change."
Marriott said the new council will face fiscal challenges.
"Especially with the affordable housing and addiction crisis," Marriott said. "It's going to take working together. I'm pretty optimistic, when I look at the names, that we'll be able to work together and help improve some of the situations in Lambton County."
His advice for the incoming council is to work as a team.
"You get a lot more done when we work together," he said.
Marriott also encouraged new council members to speak up if they have questions ahead of a meeting.
"Never be afraid to ask either other councillors or myself, or even staff that's been around a long time," he said.
The next county council meeting is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, November 4.
County of Lambton Communications and Marketing Coordinator Shaun Bisson confirmed the current term of council ends on November 14.
The new council will be sworn in during the December 9 meeting, which is also when the election of warden and deputy warden will take place.
Marriott was re-elected to a two-year term as county warden in 2024, with deputy warden and St. Clair Township Mayor Jeff Agar.
