Fort McMurray Chamber of Commerce, Candidates Forum - listener supplied photo
Candidates pile in as nomination deadline looms for Wood Buffalo municipal election
FORT McMURRAY, Alta. — About 80 people gathered at Landmark Cinemas in Timberlea on Thursday night for a business-focused Q&A hosted by the Fort McMurray Chamber of Commerce, where most Ward 1 hopefuls made their pitch.
The deadline for nominations in the upcoming municipal election is noon Monday. Prospective candidates must submit paperwork, signatures and deposits by then. Late filings will not be accepted.
Once nominations close, the Chief Returning Officer will review submissions to ensure they meet the requirements of the Local Authorities Election Act before the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo issues the official list.
This year, many candidates have filed a notice of intent in advance. The notice allows them to begin fundraising and preparing their campaigns before formally registering.
According to documents posted on the RMWB website, two people are seeking the mayoralty: incumbent Sandy Bowman and local activist Zulkifil Mujahid, who previously ran for MLA.
Ward 1, which covers Fort McMurray’s urban service area, has attracted 20 candidates for six council seats. Incumbents Lance Bussier, Shafiq Dogar, Funky Banjoko and Allan Grandison are running again. Keith McGrath has not filed his notice of intent but is widely expected to return. Former councillors Mike Allan, Verna Murphy and Don Scott are in the mix, along with newcomers Christine Kindopp, Ty Brandt, Jennifer Vardy, Koryn Dyer, Clyde Phillips, Ifran Bangash, Deborah Moses, IJ Uche-Ezeala, Jarod Sabovich, Rene Wells, Joe MacNeil, Tiffany Bennett and Luanna Bussier.
Ward 2 incumbent Kendrick Cardinal is facing challengers Claris Voygeur, Kurtis Girard and Russell Kaskamin. It was not clear Friday whether incumbent Loretta Waquan will seek re-election.
In Ward 3, incumbent Stu Wiggle is being challenged by Sarah Hollands.
Ward 4 incumbent Stella Lavalee has yet to file her papers, while Kyale Vandecasteyen and Bob Galbraith are both campaigning for the seat.
Harvard Media News will publish the official list of candidates once it is released by the RMWB.
Comments