The Race Begins
With the deadline for nominations having passed, municipal elections are now underway throughout Manitoba. These elections are held every four years, and in Brandon, they have generated considerable interest.
History
Brandon voters like consistency in their mayors, and it’s rare that an incumbent is ever defeated. The last time this happened was in 1989, when Rick Borotsik defeated Ken Burgess. No left-leaing mayor has ever been elected.
Mayoral Candidates
Dave Burgess: Incumbent and son of former mayor Ken Burgess. He has owned a small business, and served on the Keystone Centre board. After serving one term on Council, he was elected mayor in 2002, and is seeking his second mandate. His business-oriented outlook is shown by his running primarily on economic expansions and developments that have happened in Brandon in the past 4 years.
Deveryn Ross: Lawyer by trade. He’s been outspoken on issues of community safety, particularly as they pertain to downtown crime and what he says is the need to crack down on it. He also spoke out against relocating a fire hall on land the Brandon Firefighters Association felt was contaminated, a relocation proposal which was eventualy defeated on council, and on changes to Transit fare structures he felt were discriminatory. He is currently fighting to clear his name as a result of a fraud conviction resulting from a failed restaurant venture. The other candidates have decided not to make an issue out of his conviction.
Beth Smale: Medical technologist. First elected to city council in 1998 and having already served 2 terms, she has owned a small business, and is involved in many community groups such as churches, professional associations, and sports. The issues she feels are important include better collaboration among councillors and with other levels of government, downtown renewal, environmental issues, youth and education, and she is actively involved in Brandon’s Community Strategic Action Plan.
Deborah Boschman: Previously ran for council in 2002, losing to Garth Rice. After being reprimanded by her church for writing a letter to the editor critical of the mayor, she received an outpouring of support from the community, which convinced her to run. An educator by trade, she says her faith is important to her, and would guide her in any local decision-making processes.
Nickoles Avlonitis: The youngest of all the candidates. He is an entrepreneur, and wants to focus on making Brandon an attracive place to be.
Mike Abbey: Previously ran as the NDP candidate in Brandon-Souris in 2004, losing to Conservative Merv Tweed. A long-time resident of Brandon, Mike has been actively involved in neighbourhood renewal issues, in particular having served on the Brandon Neighbourhood Renewal Corporation, and has been greatly involved in youth soccer.
Council Candidates
Council races are expected to be very eventful. Citizens in at least 3 wards will have new councillors, as Rick Chrest(Ward 4), Beth Smale(Ward 5), and Larry Brown(Ward 7) have announced their intentions to not seek re-election on council. The sole exception is Ward 9, where Errol Black has been acclaimed and will serve his third term. In addition to several new faces, there are several well-known individuals vying for council. These individuals include former Independent candidate Mike Volek, former councillor Jeff Harwood, former Brandon West Conservative MLA Jim McCrae, and Brandon and District Labour Council President Jan Chaboyer. In general, the discourse of issues revolves around economic issues, notably taxation, competitiveness, population growth, attracting business and investment, and gereral quality of life, and this focus is reflected in the composition of the current council. Nonetheless, several of the current council candidates have raised issues of concern to progressives, including public transit, affordale housing, citizen engagement in local politics, and urban sprawl.
The election takes place Wednesday October 25.
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