Noah Redden ‘ecstatic’ with rise from obscurity to 3rd-place finish in Winnipeg mayor race
Posted October 29, 2026 12:49 pm.
Noah Redden didn’t have the name recognition or the campaign budget to go toe-to-toe with the top contenders for Winnipeg mayor.
You wouldn’t know it by looking at Wednesday’s election results.
The 27-year-old Redden finished third in the race for mayor, with 39,962 Winnipeggers casting a ballot for him – 19.8 per cent of the vote.
He was just 1,741 votes behind seasoned politician Kevin Klein in second place.
“I didn’t win the mayoralship of Winnipeg, but I’m still very impressed with my showing today and I ran a good campaign, a clean campaign,” Redden told CityNews on election night. “I stood for the things I believe in, and, you know what, I’m just ecstatic with how far we’ve come.”
Redden, a software developer running for office for the first time, was little known in Winnipeg just a few months ago. But a strong social media presence was one of the ways he managed to get his message out.
“As recently as this summer I wasn’t exactly a public figure, and now I’m a top three candidate to be mayor of Winnipeg. So you know what? I’m feeling great,” he said.
Redden’s campaign focused on better public transit and more support for people experiencing homelessness and addictions.
A poll early in the election campaign put him at four per cent. That jumped to 14 per cent in the days leading up to the vote. On Wednesday, he blew both those numbers out of the water.
Speaking to CityNews Thursday, Redden says Winnipeggers connected with his message.
“I hear that people think I’m down to earth and really more in tune with their lives and what they want. I am not like the incumbent mayor or Kevin Klein who have friends with deep pockets.”
And he’s not planning to let that momentum go to waste. Without a seat at city hall, Redden still wants to keep Winnipeggers involved in the decisions being made there.
“I think it just means organizing regular average people to get to city hall and make sure their voices are heard whenever any new bylaws are discussed, any new funding, as well as being more active on social media over the next four years to make sure the things I care about are talked about at city hall,” he said.
Redden says this might not be his one and only foray into politics. “I don’t think this is my last election.”
He says he wants to spend the next few years volunteering throughout Winnipeg.
“Really understanding the needs of vulnerable people in the city to really have a much more solid platform and grasp of what people in the city need to overcome homelessness or addictions,” he said.
“I had a really good time walking with Mama Bear Clan and Bear Clan a few weeks ago, so I think that’s something I could see myself doing a lot more of in the next four years.”
–With files from Sofia Frolova and Mitchell Ringos
