Municipal Election 2022

It was a chaotic scene at Fort Gibraltar Wednesday morning.

Shortly before 10 a.m., seventeen students and one teacher from St. John's-Ravenscourt fell from a structure inside Whittier Park.

Dryden residents are receiving notice of a by-election to elect a trustee to the Keewatin-Patrica District School Board.

The election replaces last October’s vote which was stopped because of voting irregularities.

Some voters received credentials from both the City of Dryden and the Keewatin Patricia District School Board, allowing them to cast multiple votes.

Voting in the new election will begin on January 30th online, ending on February 6th.

Barbara Gauthier and Judi Green remain on the ballot as candidates.

Leadership with the City of Dryden says the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board should cover the $15,000 cost of a new English Public School Board Trustee election in the new year, after a messy situation leading up to October 24.

City Clerk Allyson Euler declared an Emergency under the Elections Act on the day of the Municipal Election after finding irregularities in ballots for the board trustee position, where some voters received credentials from both the city and the KPDSB – allowing them to cast multiple votes.

Kenora officially has a new Mayor and Council – who will serve until 2026.

At City Hall on Tuesday night, community members joined city staff as the City of Kenora held their official swearing-in ceremony for the newly-elected Mayor Andrew Poirier and Councillors Graham Chaze, Barb Manson, Bob Bernie, Kelsie Van Belleghem, Lisa Moncrief and Lindsay Koch.

Members of Altona's new town council are settling into the new term. 
    
Council held its inaugural meeting this week under the leadership of new Mayor, Harv Schroeder.

"I'm very excited to be working with the next Council," said Schroeder, adding some great questions were asked during that meeting. 

The newly elected board of trustees of Garden Valley School Division (GVSD) took their Oath of Office Tuesday evening during the board's reorganization meeting.
    
Incumbent Trustee Leah Klassen was acclaimed as board chair during the voting process, and fellow incumbent John Klassen was elected vice-chair. 

It was a heated municipal election campaign in the region and that looks to have shown in the polls.

With preliminary data, the Association of Municipalities of Ontario says northwestern Ontario seems to have recorded the top #3 highest voting turnouts across the province in the 2022 Municipal Election.

The newly formed RM of Stanley council held its inaugural meeting Thursday, where Reeve Ike Friesen and the RM's councilors took their Oath of Office. 

Going into the meeting, the council still had one vacant seat in Ward 2 following last month's election Municipal Election as no one came forward to run for the spot. However, that Ward 2 seat is no longer vacant, as the elected councilors have filled the seat.
    
Reeve Friesen says Josh Zacharias will join Bitz Loewen, representing Ward 2 constituents.

The R.M. of Dufferin's new Reeve says he was excited and ready to take on the challenge of the job upon hearing he'd been elected to the post in last week's municipal election. Earning 351 votes, Cor Lodder defeated incumbent George Gray who garnered 264 votes. 

"I was, first of all, humbled that the residents decided to give me an opportunity, and now I have to honour that call and work hard to provide good, positive results for the municipality and anybody else that's affected by it," said Lodder.

Portage la Prairie’s City Council for 2022-2026 was officially sworn in on November 2nd.

Mayor Sharilyn Knox caught up with PortageOnline and says it’s been a whirlwind throughout the past couple of days, but she’s ready to get to work for the city. She shares a message for the Portagers that have supported her so far.