Another sitting Hamilton councillor is bowing out of this fall’s municipal election campaign.
Ward 1’s Aidan Johnson has withdrawn his candidacy and will be returning to the private sector, as executive director of the Niagara Community Legal Clinic.
In a Facebook post announcing his decision, Johnson notes that the non-profit’s mandate is to create greater access to justice for low-income and marginalized people in the Niagara region.
He adds that he has “mixed emotions” and is “deeply proud of what we have accomplished” during his first term as Ward 1 councillor.
Johnson points to LRT planning, council’s Urban Indigenous Strategy and the Trans Protocol, which made Hamilton the first municipality in Canada to enact a bylaw defining the public space access rights of trans citizens, among his proudest accomplishments.
Johnson’s withdrawal means Hamilton voters will elect at least four new councillors in October.
Ward 3’s Matthew Green and Flamborough’s Robert Pasuta are also not seeking re-election, and former Ward 7 Coun. Donna Skelly’s seat is vacant after she was elected to the provincial legislature.