ELECTION ANALYSIS
A look at how Saskatoon voted
The bulk of Saskatoon mayor-elect Charlie Clark’s support in the civic election came from the city centre and the west side, while incumbent mayor Don Atchison was the most popular option in the city’s north and east suburbs.
Official poll-by-poll results released Friday show Clark won at 41 of 62 polling stations on election day, while Atchison won at 21 polling stations.
On election day, Clark picked up more votes than Atchison in every neighbourhood within the boundaries of Circle Drive, except Nutana Suburban Centre.
Clark’s support also extended well outside Circle Drive; he was the top choice in every west side neighbourhood except Silverwood Heights and Lawson Heights in the north and Montgomery Place in the southwest.
Clark also picked up the most votes near the university in the northeast neighbourhoods of College Park, Sutherland and Forest Grove.
Michelle Beveridge, Clark’s campaign manager, said the poll results were “surprisingly consistent” with what her team found by canvassing. The neighbourhoods where Clark didn’t win were ones they recognized early on as being less engaged with his message, so Clark’s campaign volunteers spent less time there trying to get out the vote, she said.
“It’s a little bit of a chicken and egg,” Beveridge remarked.
Both Atchison and third-place candidate Kelley Moore picked up a greater percentage of the vote during advance polling than they did on election day. Atchison had 41 per cent support at advance polls compared to 36 per cent on election day; Moore picked up 27 per cent of the vote during advance polls and 20 per cent on election day.
Clark, on the other hand, got more support on election day than during advance polls; he had 31 per cent support during advance polls, but 43 per cent support on voting day. He ultimately won the election with 41 per cent of the total vote; Atchison took 37.
Beveridge said no single factor contributed to Clark’s 11th-hour swell in support.
“There were just a lot of things that came together really well for us in that last week and we were worried about the advance polls because we knew that was before the surge had started,” she said.
Clark’s campaign team was tuned into what people cared about, and as the election loomed closer, many people were more concerned about the character of their future mayor than policy issues, which had been discussed at length earlier in the campaign, she added.
Endorsement videos made by Clark supporters — including comedian Zach Galifianakis, who is married to Clark’s cousin — helped people learn more about Clark’s character and encouraged more people to make endorsement videos themselves, Beveridge said.
Sara Wheelwright, Moore’s campaign manager, said Moore’s support was hurt on Monday — after advance polls closed — by the release of two public opinion polls that showed Atchison in the lead.
“That certainly had an effect on people that just wanted a change and didn’t want Mr. Atchison to stay for a fifth term,” Wheelwright said.
She added that Moore, who led in opinion polls in early October, saw things take a wrong turn in the week before the election, when many Saskatoon residents just started to tune in.
“There were lots of things that happened. Being in the spotlight meant that everybody attacked her and there were personal attacks and things that we would never have ever guessed would have happened,” she said, pointing to both the North Saskatoon Business Association and Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Saskatchewan publicly criticizing Moore.
A call to the communications head of Atchison’s campaign team was not returned Friday afternoon.
Clark got his greatest percentage of votes — 68 per cent — at the Brunskill School polling station in the Varsity View neighbourhood and his least — 14 per cent — at the Willows Golf and Country Club polling station in The Willows.
Atchison received his greatest support — 76 per cent — at the Willows Golf and Country Club and his lowest — 13 per cent — at the Princess Alexandra polling station in Riversdale.