Competition is healthy – and by that measure, the health of the local government election improved markedly this week with the emergence of competitive two-way races in the Sunshine Coast Regional District, a third candidate for mayor in Sechelt and a pair of capable newcomers running for seats on Gibsons and Sechelt council.
In Halfmoon Bay, community association president Terry Knight has decided to take on veteran school trustee Lori Pratt, who declared her intentions back in February. With current director and long-time SCRD chair Garry Nohr stepping up to serve as Knight’s alternate on the board, Knight has some heavy artillery on his side and Pratt will have a serious fight on her hands from one end of Redrooffs to the other.
In Elphinstone, the versatile Donna McMahon is challenging incumbent director Lorne Lewis, who though not officially declared is widely expected to seek a fifth term. McMahon is counting on an appetite for change, but dislodging Lewis, a vigorous campaigner with encyclopedic knowledge of Area E (and the only rural candidate who would represent continuity on the board), will be a big undertaking. Her emphasis on improving communication is welcome and needed.
In the other rural areas, so far a single candidate has come forward for West Howe Sound and another for Pender Harbour/Egmont. Both Mark Hiltz and Mike Price have strong technical and community backgrounds; all they need now is some competition. Roberts Creek is still sending out the sound of crickets, but we expect that to change next week with at least one candidate declaring her intention to run.
In Sechelt, the race for mayor heated up this week with a third candidate entering the ring against incumbent Bruce Milne and current councillor Darnelda Siegers. Retired businessman Al Holt brings an unabashedly populist tone to the campaign, delivering such zingers as “A blind squirrel could cut taxes,” and his unfiltered style promises to liven up election forums and challenge notions of politics-as-usual. What remains to be seen is whether Holt will siphon off votes from Siegers and guarantee Milne’s re-election, or have a neutral effect, or carry enough support on his own to walk straight up the middle to a surprise victory. And that’s assuming no other mayoral candidates join the fray, in which case all bets could be off.
In the Sechelt council race, Brenda Rowe’s announcement this week raises the number of declared candidates to seven – incumbents Mike Shanks, Doug Wright and Alice Lutes, the “loose slate” of Alton Toth, Donna Bell and Jacqueline Gillis, and Rowe herself. Since there are only six spots on council, the process of elimination now sets in. Rowe, with her varied background and proven dedication to the community, automatically becomes a contender.
In Gibsons, the orderly replacement shuffle of council candidates continues with Aleria Ladwig announcing her campaign this week, complete with the backing of outgoing incumbent Charlene SanJenko and what has become the almost canonical endorsement of Silas White for mayor. Articulate and accomplished, Ladwig has grounded herself municipally on the Advisory Planning Commission and would be a solid addition to council. The same applies to veteran administrator Bill Beamish, who declared his candidacy after White announced he would be giving up his seat on council for a shot at the mayor’s chair. Incumbent Stafford Lumley is running for a second term, leaving only Jeremy Valeriote’s intentions unknown. With Gibsons politics feeling like one big happy family these days, people are starting to wonder when the homewreckers are going to arrive.
