Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) voters chose continuity on Nov. 15, returning the incumbent director in Elphinstone and electing candidates who had the backing of outgoing incumbents in Roberts Creek and West Howe Sound.
In a competitive race for Elphinstone (Area E), Lorne Lewis was re-elected for a fourth term with 472 votes compared to 387 for Robert Corlett and 194 for Thomas Murray.
“Three people in the race made it kind of interesting,” Lewis said Monday. “You could say I’ve been campaigning for the last nine years. I was re-elected, so I must have done something right.”
Lewis noted Corlett, who challenged Lewis on his environmental record, had increased his percentage of the vote from 2008, when he finished with less than half of Lewis’s total in a two-way race.
“Essentially he was running on my record and enough people thought I had done a good enough job that I’m back, and I’m grateful to them,” Lewis said.
Voter turnout in Elphinstone was 38 per cent, up from 26 per cent in 2011.
In Roberts Creek (Area D), Mark Lebbell scored a decisive win, receiving more than 60 per cent of votes cast in a four-way contest to replace incumbent Donna Shugar. Lebbell, who had been endorsed by Shugar, easily outdistanced the competition with 687 votes compared to Hans Penner with 222 votes, Barbara Hague with 148 votes and David Kelln with 61 votes.
“It’s a nice mandate, for sure,” Lebbell said Tuesday. “I was surprised by how big a margin, but I grew in confidence as I knocked on doors.”
He said his campaign resonated with Creek voters because “the values in what I put forth as my priorities meshed closely with what Roberts Creek thinks is important.”
Going door-to-door, he said, he found many people were most passionate about provincial issues.
“So I see advocacy as being pretty key.”
Voter turnout in Roberts Creek was 43 per cent.
In West Howe Sound (Area F), Ian Winn defeated former Gibsons councillor Ron Girard by a margin of 379 to 228, with voter turnout at 33 per cent.
Winn, who had been nominated by incumbent Lee Turnbull, said he was “very pleased” with the outcome, which showed that voters preferred his style of leadership “as the way to get things done.”
He agreed the electorate was looking for continuity on the SCRD board, rather than a major change in approach.
“I think at the board level, a lot has been done to build on that team and people want to see the teamwork continue,” he said.
The low voter turnout was a disappointment for Winn, who said he would be looking for more ways to engage voters and inform them about SCRD operations. The issue of mail-in ballots, which were not provided as an option this election in the SCRD, should also be dealt with, he added, saying it was especially relevant for voters on Gambier and Keats islands and non-resident property owners.
“It has to be done now, while it’s top of mind with people.”
With the acclamation of incumbent directors Garry Nohr in Halfmoon Bay and Frank Mauro in Egmont/Pender Harbour, one feature of the new board will be its all-male composition from the rural areas.
“That’s really sad,” Lewis said, “but I’m already trying to get more women on my advisory planning commission.”
The new SCRD board will hold its inaugural meeting and elect the chair on Thursday, Dec. 4, at 11 a.m., followed by a public open house from 12:30 to 2 p.m.
