KITCHENER — Mayor Berry Vrbanovic has filed to run for re-election in Kitchener’s 2026 municipal election, seeking a fourth consecutive term in the city’s top political office.
Vrbanovic was first elected mayor in 2014 and won re-election in 2018 and 2022, meaning he has led the city for nearly 12 years. Before becoming mayor, he served as a Kitchener councillor from 1994 to 2014, giving him more than three decades in elected municipal office.
His candidacy places him in a mayoral field that already includes David Alton, Wazhma Frogh and George Trihenea, according to the city’s list of nominated candidates. The election is scheduled for October 26.
Vrbanovic’s latest term has been defined by extraordinary development pressure. The city says more than 17,000 homes have been approved since 2023, while Kitchener qualified for Ontario’s Building Faster Fund for three consecutive years by meeting provincial housing targets.
Council has also pursued missing-middle and affordable-housing incentives and major projects including the downtown Innovation Arena. At the same time, growth has intensified difficult debates over property taxes, housing affordability, homelessness, downtown safety, development charges and whether water and other infrastructure can keep pace.
Vrbanovic’s record is therefore one of strong housing approvals and continued investment, but also of unresolved affordability and infrastructure pressures that have become more visible as the city expands.
The campaign will test whether voters view Vrbanovic’s long experience as an asset or believe Kitchener needs a change after 12 years under the same mayor.
His incumbency provides substantial name recognition and a record of obtaining support from senior governments, but challengers can point to the growing cost of living and public frustration surrounding development, taxes and core services.
Vrbanovic’s official biography confirms that he was first elected mayor in 2014 after serving six terms as a city councillor.