Civic election speculation in full swing
Political aspirations and declarations are sparking debate and speculation in the West Island and Off-Island in the run-up to the Nov. 5 civic elections.
Even before a single ballot is cast, Pointe-Claire residents know they will have a new mayor because Morris Trudeau has announced that he won’t seek re-election. Trudeau served as a councillor for 15 years before being elected mayor in 2013. He was preceded in the mayor’s office by Bill McMurchie (19982013), who followed Malcolm Knox (1982-1998).
Pointe-Claire hasn’t had a single-term mayor since the 1950s. In contrast, Beaconsfield voters have had three different mayors since the mega-city demerger in 2006: Georges Bourelle, elected in 2013, David Pollock, elected in 2009 and Bob Benedetti, elected in 2005.
Bourelle could break that trend. Since he was elected Beaconsfield council meetings have been run with relative decorum as opposed to the circus atmosphere that hampered the previous administration.
In the 52 years between 1961 and 2013, four men served as Pointe-Claire mayor — five if you count Montreal mayor Gérald Tremblay during the forced mega-city merger years when McMurchie was borough mayor.
The unspoken tradition in Pointe-Claire is that whoever is elected mayor has first served as a councillor and gained some knowledge of city hall procedures. Which Pointe-Claire city councillor is ready to step up and accept the challenge? Could it be Kelly Thorstad-Cullen, serving her first term, or 20-year veteran Aldo Iermieri, who was acclaimed the previous two elections?
John Belvedere, who hopes to become Pointe-Claire mayor without first sitting as a councillor, has once again announced his candidacy. In 2013, Trudeau garnered 53 per cent of the ballots and topped Belvedere by 677 votes.
Meanwhile Off-Island, Vaudreuil-Dorion voters have had candidates from two political parties to consider for the past few months. Mayor Guy Pilon’s Parti de l’action de VaudreuilDorion, which includes five current councillors seeking reelection, faces a challenge from Pierre Séguin’s Team We Are slate, whose candidates would all be newcomers to council if elected. Of note: Pierre Séguin’s brother François, a longtime city councillor, is running with Pilon’s team.
Hudson has been in a state of flux over the past three mandates. At this point, it’s not yet clear if Mayor Ed Prévost plans to seek a second term. He missed several months of council meetings last year because of ongoing health issues.
Since he was elected in 2013, Prévost has helped steer financially challenged Hudson in the right direction. However, there is ample work to be done to improve infrastructure as well as the town’s reputation, after years of neglect and fraud at the hands of former director general Louise Léger-Villandré, sentenced to 30 months in prison last year.
The only incumbent returned to office in 2013 was Robert Spencer, who resigned from council last December and has since moved out of Hudson. The remaining five councillors are all completing their first term.
So far, two residents have come forward to announce a run for mayor: Bill Nash, a regular at public question periods during council meetings, as well as Jamie Nicholls, the former New Democratic Party MP. It remains up in the air whether Prévost or any current councillors will run in the upcoming election.
All those wishing to make a difference in their community should plan ahead if they hope to seek a seat on council. For more election information, check your city’s website or electionsquebec.qc.ca.