With unofficial election results trickling in Monday evening (Oct. 26), there were some new faces voted into leadership positions in two of the County’s four lower-tier townships.
In Dysart et al, Greg Bishop scored a comfortable win over fellow first-time contender, Andrew Nowell, securing approximately 85 per cent of the local vote. Walt McKechnie was returned for a second time as deputy mayor and fifth term total, narrowly defeating Pat Casey.
Tammy McKelvey has been elected mayor in Minden Hills, defeating incumbent Bob Carter and fellow challengers Pat Kitcheman and Pam Sayne, with Ivan Ingram voted in as deputy mayor, defeating Richard Bradley.
Liz Danielsen won a second mayoral term in Algonquin Highlands, defeating challenger Mike Lang for a second straight election cycle. The two duked it out in the 2022 election, with Danielsen securing 53 per cent of the vote. Numbers from this year were unavailable as of 10 p.m.
Another familiar face will be back in the head seat of Highlands East council for the next four years, with Dave Burton securing a sixth term. He earned 29 per cent of the vote, narrowly defeating Steve Kauffeldt (27 per cent), Krystle Anne Pegg (20 per cent), Mike Killingsworth (16 per cent) and Cheryl Ellis (seven per cent).
There were cheers at the Haliburton Curling Club around 8:30 p.m. when Bishop announced he’d secured the mayor’s chair. His first message was to his family, campaign chair Andrea Roberts, and Dysart voters who showed “overwhelming” support.
“It was five months ago when we started this process… I’m feeling great about the results, what I’ve been hearing and can’t wait to get started. I know how much work it’s going to be and am looking forward to the challenge – not only in Dysart, but at the County level, too,” Bishop told The Highlander.
After decades of working as a land surveyor, speaking at hundreds of municipal council meetings, Bishop said he has the experience to hit the ground running once he’s sworn in next month.
Asked what his first priority would be, Bishop said revisiting several of the township’s bylaw files and infrastructure needs.
“We have to look, overall, at our infrastructure and assets and try to do our best to get them under control and do the best for Dysart,” Bishop said. He committed to hosting community town halls so the public can be part of those discussions.
Dysart’s new mayor said he wanted to engage his competitor, Andrew Nowell, to make sure he remains involved in local-level politics, despite not being elected.
“He’s got some ideas and I like them… he’s got experience and there are things from his past that can help us community-wide,” Bishop said.
Other results and reaction
With some major turnover among council and senior staff in Algonquin Highlands – with three members of council not seeking re-election, and a new CAO, treasurer and planner being hired this year – Danielsen felt she was the best choice to help guide council through the next four years.
“I’m so happy to be able to lead our council through what appears to be a very challenging term ahead. Some of the results here and across the County are a little bit bittersweet, but I look forward to working with some new faces with fresh ideas,” Danielsen said.
McKechnie said he was emotional after hearing he’d been returned for another term as Dysart’s deputy mayor.
“Every day, I was out knocking on doors, talking to people about these next four years… this just means the world to me,” McKechnie said. “To all the people in Dysart who voted for me, I can’t say thank you enough for trusting me. I’ll be a good deputy mayor for Greg.”
Elsewhere in Dysart, Deb Lambe was elected as Ward 1 councillor, Mike Waller won the Ward 2 seat, Marianne Schlottke will represent Ward 3, while Carm Sawyer and Barry Boice will return to wards four and five respectively.
In Algonquin Highlands, Karla MacKay (Ward 1) Gary Trapp and James Cooper (Ward 2) and Don Embree (Ward 3) will join Danielsen on council, while Andrew Martin (Ward 1), Angela Lewis (Ward 2), Arlene Quinn (Ward 3) and Amy Toye (Ward 4) were elected in Highlands East.
Minden Hills council has a mix of new and old faces – Bob Sisson was elected councillor at large, with Steven Hertel, Lisa Mercer, Dan Garbutt and Shirley Johannessen making up the rest of the table.
Check this week’s Highlander for more election coverage.
