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Voter turnout in Ramara: where we stand

Last verified July 16, 2026 · Every claim links to its source · Jump to sources

The short version

Ramara's municipality-wide voter turnout fell from 38.97% in 2018 to 36.08% in 2022. Among Ontario local municipalities with fewer than 30,000 residents, Ramara ranked 188th of 329 that reported ballots in 2022: close to the middle, but 1.32 percentage points below the group median. In a stricter comparison limited to municipalities where the mayor or reeve was elected rather than acclaimed in both years, Ramara ranked 119th of 161. [Ontario municipal election results] [AMO 2018 turnout]

36.08%
Ramara's municipality-wide turnout in 2022
188 of 329
2022 rank among small municipalities reporting ballots
119 of 161
Rank where the head of council was contested in both elections
157
Additional 2022 ballots that would have put Ramara just above the 2022 group median, at the same elector count
What this measures: Ontario's files report participation across the whole municipal election. They do not publish a separate turnout denominator for the mayor ballot. This brief therefore says municipal turnout, not "turnout for mayor."

Ramara and the small-municipality average

Municipality-wide voter turnout, 2018 and 2022
2018: Ramara 38.97%, small-municipality average 42.36%. 2022: Ramara 36.08%, small-municipality average 37.17%.

Unweighted average of municipalities with reported ballots in each year. The ranked group contained 326 municipalities in 2018 and 329 in 2022. Sources: AMO 2018 turnout workbook; Ontario 2022 municipal election data; 2021 Census population.

Ramara's exact calculation

ElectionEligible electorsBallots castTurnoutSmall-municipality rank
201811,1464,34438.97%212 of 326
202211,8694,28236.08%188 of 329

For 2022, the calculation is 4,282 ÷ 11,869 = 36.08%. The same number appears when Ontario's published voter and elector counts are divided. For 2018, this study uses AMO's published municipal figure: 4,344 ÷ 11,146 = 38.97%. [Ontario results] [AMO 2018 workbook] [Township election information]

Ramara was not at the bottom, and it was not near the top. In the broad 2022 comparison it sat slightly below the midpoint.
Broad rank: 188 of 329. Strict contested-head rank: 119 of 161.

Who was closest to Ramara in 2022

These are the four municipalities immediately above and below Ramara in the ranked list. Rates are shown to two decimals, but ranks use the unrounded calculation.

2022 rankMunicipality2022 turnoutChange since 2018Head contested both years?
184Town of Shelburne36.24%−1.78 ppNo
185Township of Madoc36.10%−5.75 ppYes
186Township of Mulmur36.10%−7.34 ppNo
187Township of Morley36.08%Not comparableNo
188Township of Ramara36.08%−2.89 ppYes
189Township of The North Shore36.02%+1.60 ppNo
190Township of Oro-Medonte35.81%−6.86 ppYes
191Township of South Frontenac35.65%−2.62 ppYes
192Town of Midland35.58%+0.07 ppYes

Turnout fell across most of the group

Of the 314 small municipalities with comparable, non-zero participation in both elections, 69.7% recorded lower turnout in 2022. Their unweighted average change was −4.93 percentage points. Ramara's decline was smaller at −2.89 points, which helps explain why its relative rank improved from 212th to 188th even though fewer eligible electors voted. This is descriptive evidence: the source files do not explain why turnout changed. [AMO 2022 election analysis] [Ontario results]

How the comparison was built

The starting universe is Ontario's 414 lower- and single-tier local municipalities in the 2022 results file. "Small" means a 2021 Census population below 30,000. That upper boundary is borrowed from Statistics Canada's small-population-centre category; it is a study definition, not an official municipal class. The resulting group contains 352 municipalities. All remain in the downloadable audit list, but rows with missing or zero ballots are not ranked. [Ontario results] [AMO / 2021 Census population] [Statistics Canada size groups]

The strict comparison uses Ontario's successful-candidate files to keep only municipalities whose mayor or reeve is recorded as Elected, rather than Acclaimed, in both 2018 and 2022. It is still municipality-wide turnout, but it reduces one obvious comparability problem: residents may have had no head-of-council contest on their ballot.

The 2018 source conflict is disclosed, not hidden

Ontario's older raw 2018 export and AMO's published 2018 workbook disagree for many municipalities: 174 elector counts and 58 voter counts differ. For Ramara, the raw Ontario row lists 10,881 electors and would imply 39.92%; AMO's published workbook uses 11,146 electors, 4,344 voters and 38.97%. This study uses AMO's published 2018 rate consistently, with one documented repair for Gananoque where AMO recorded zero voters despite an elected mayor. The workbook's Data Quality sheet shows the reconciliation.

Check the work

The complete list and calculation workbook are public. The workbook includes the broad ranking, strict contested-head ranking, all 414 local municipalities, source register and the 2018 reconciliation table.

Download the full workbook Download the 352-row CSV

If you find an error or a source that changes the result, tell Ramara Hub. Corrections will be dated and described.

What better participation would look like

The 2022 small-municipality median was 37.40%. At Ramara's 2022 elector count, 157 additional ballots would have moved turnout just above that line. That is an illustration using the 2022 denominator, not a forecast for 2026: the voters' list, contests and comparison group will change.

Turnout is not a score for any candidate. It is one measure of whether residents are participating in the decisions closest to home. For dates, eligibility and official voting information, use the Township of Ramara's election page.

Sources

Government of Ontario — municipal election results, including 2018 and 2022 municipal and successful-candidate files · Association of Municipalities of Ontario — 2018 voter turnout and population workbook · AMO / Statistics Canada — 2021 Census municipal population workbook · Statistics Canada — population centre size groups · AMO — analysis of 2022 municipal post-election data · Township of Ramara — official election information