The clock is ticking for people interested in running for mayor, city councillor or school board trustee.
The municipal election nomination deadline is Friday at 2 p.m.
A person is entitled to run if they are at least 18 years old on voting day, live in Ottawa and are a Canadian citizen.
Candidates for school board trustee must meet the same criteria and also be a supporter of that school board through taxation.
The filing fee for mayoral candidates is $200 and it’s $100 for council and trustee candidates.
Fees are refundable if the nomination is withdrawn by Sept. 12, if the candidate is elected or if he or she receives more than two per cent of the votes cast.
Incumbent Jim Watson is facing at least five challengers for the job of mayor.
Meanwhile, there are open races in half a dozen wards as councillors Rainer Bloess, Steve Desroches, Diane Holmes, Peter Hume, Maria McRae and Doug Thompson have all announced they won’t run again.
Somerset ward has attracted the most candidates with 10, followed by Innes and Osgoode, each with nine entrants.
The number of mayoral candidates registered pales in comparison to 2010 when 20 names were on the ballot, but there are slightly more people registered in the various ward races than last time.
Three councillors — Keith Egli (Knoxdale-Merivale), Allan Hubley (Kanata South) and Shad Qadri (Stittsville) — were facing no challengers a day before the deadline to enter.
Voters head to the polls on Oct. 27.
