It was back to the polls again for many local residents with the 2022 Municipal Elections taking centre stage in mid-October. (NanaimoNewsNOW illustration)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

to the polls

Top Stories of 2022: Elections shape local government for next four years

Dec 23, 2022 | 10:11 AM

NANAIMO — A seemingly endless parade of elections for local residents continued this year.

Voters went to the polls to elect new Mayors, Councillors and School Trustees on Oct. 15, setting in motion a new four-year term for local governments and an opportunity for voters to provide support for decisions made, or change direction.

Nanaimo, for the most part, elected to keep moving in the same direction. Mayor Leonard Krog comfortably held onto his job until at least 2026, easing past Tasha Brown, Brunie Brunie and Agnes Provost.

“With good governance, staff feel comfortable working harder, performing, presenting new ideas, and playing the role a good public service should…I’m quite optimistic,” Krog told NanaimoNewsNOW on election night when asked about working with a new nine-member group.

Council changed slightly, with five incumbents staying and three new members joining.

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Paul Manly, Janice Perrino and Hilary Eastmure replaced Zeni Maartman and Don Bonner, as well as Jim Turley who did not seek re-election.

Second-term councillor Tyler Brown finished fourth among the incumbents who were re-elected.

“I think we have to remember it was an extremely challenging four years…as we map out what the next four years look like,” Brown said. “We definitely want to be doing the things that are important for the community and bringing people together to address those challenges and do our part to lower the temperature.”

Former Green Party MP Paul Manly topped the ballots with just over 10,000 votes.

“We have to work with the senior levels of government,” Manly said. “Clearly with the issues we’re facing we need support…especially when it comes to affordability, the homeless situation, criminal justice reform to deal with the public safety issues we have on our streets.”

Voter turnout however was a lasting story from the October vote.

Under 25 per cent of eligible Nanaimo residents cast a ballot, a sharp drop from just over 40 per cent who turned out in 2018.

Change was more plentiful elsewhere.

Parksville elected incumbent councillor Doug O’Brien as its new Mayor, beating Ed Mayne in a two-horse race.

O’Brien is joined at the Parksville council table by just one returning member, Adam Fras. New faces included Amit Gaur, Mary Beil, Sean Wood, Sylvia Martin and Joel Grenz.

“I’m looking forward to providing a little more transparency and a little more concentration on making sure we have the necessary infrastructure,” O’Brien said. “Parksville’s going through a building boom and it’s no secret and the thing is we’ve been discovered.”

Qualicum Beach also elected a new Mayor.

Teunis Westbroek reclaimed the top job over incumbent Brian Wiese. Incumbents Anne Skipsey and Scott Harrison also returned, with new faces Petronella Vander Valk and Jean Young rounding out the five-person governing body.

Voters in Qualicum Beach also turned down two referendum questions.

By roughly 60-40 margins, voters declined adding two new councillors for the 2026 election, increasing Council to seven members.

As well, voters said no to spending up to $700,000 on refurbishing the St. Andrew’s Lodge building.

In Lantzville, Mark Swain comfortably held onto his job as District Mayor over lone challenger Stan Pottie.

Joining Swain at the table were councillors Jonathan Lerner, Ian Savage, Joan Jones and Rachelle Mundell.

The nine-person School District 68 board of trustees also sported a new look post-election, with four incumbents being joined by five new members.

Naomi Bailey, Tania Brzovic, Greg Keller and Charlene McKay, who served as Board Chair, were re-elected.

Leana Pellegrin, Mark Robinson, Leanne Lee, Chantelle Morvay and Tom Rokeby will join the table.

Typically more of a background race, candidates were thrust into the spotlight following a meeting on Gabriola Island days before the election.

Tanner Scott, a candidate for school trustee, answered a question on support for SOGI (sexual orientation and gender identity) education, by allegedly showing imagery of gender re-assignment surgery.

He was escorted out of the meeting by police.

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