When voters in southwestern Ontario go to the polls on Oct. 27, some familiar names will appear on their ballots.

Thursday marked the first day for municipal candidates across Ontario to officially register their intentions.

Regional chair Ken Seiling says he plans to run for a tenth term as the top elected official in the region.

“The interest is still there and people are still interested in supporting me, so I thought I’d throw my hat in one more time,” he says, pointing to transit, affordable housing and childcare challenges as key issues in the region.

Seiling was first elected regional chair in 1985, when the position was voted on by other regional councillors.

He has been elected by the public five times, beginning in 1997.

Bob Oberholtzer, a Waterloo resident and former business owner, will also be running for regional chair.

At Kitchener City Hall, a battle is shaping up between incumbent Mayor Carl Zehr – who was first elected in 1997 – and current councillor Dan Glenn Graham, who also plans to run for mayor.

Also seeking another four years in office are Cambridge Mayor Doug Craig, who was first elected in 2000, and Wilmot Mayor Les Armstrong, currently in his first term.

Fellow first-term mayor Todd Cowan, of Woolwich Township, filed his registration papers Thusrday morning.

“There’s more I’d like to get done. I want to finish the job that I started,” he says.

North Dumfries Mayor Rob Deutschmann says he will not ask the voters for a second term at the helm of his township, while Coun. Susan Foxton is one candidate looking to replace him.

In Guelph, Coun. Cam Guthrie is the first to throw his hat in the ring for the mayoralty.

Last month, Waterloo Mayor Brenda Halloran announced that she would not be returning to office or seeking the job of regional chair.

Coun. Karen Scian and Coun. Scott Witmer will also leave Waterloo council, while Coun. Melissa Durrell says she’ll be back on the ballot.

Elsewhere in southwestern Ontario, Brantford Mayor Chris Friel and Woodstock Mayor Pat Sobeski are both seeking re-election.