Leiper Win in Kitchissippi

What an exciting win for Jeff Leiper! Usually it is tough to unseat an incumbent but he did it handily last Monday with 7557 votes to Katherine Hobbs' 4197. Although his group ran a great campaign, they did not expect such a lopsided win. My involvement in his campaign was minimal. We had a meet and greet here for our neighbours and we worked as scrutineers on the day of the election, for those last crucial hours of 4 to 8 pm. Still, it was enough to make us feel that we were a part of the effort to bring a new face to city council. It was fun to go to his victory party and see a lot of neighbours there, who were just as happy as we were.

Big provincial and federal campaigns are largely fought in the media, with so much money for TV ads. It seems that municipal campaigns are a lot more work at the grassroots level. Voters get involved because they are concerned about local issues. Even such a simple gesture as having a lawn sign means that you talk to your neighbours more, because they may not have heard of your candidate. That's why door to door visits are so important; to put a face to a name. Jeff estimates that he knocked on about 16 000 doors over the past nine months and dropped over twenty pounds in the process. (I should get out and walk.) 

On election day I was impressed with the steady stream of voters, many who waited in lineups to cast their ballots. Sad to say, but the turnout across the city was a very pathetic 39.9%, probably because there was no real threat to Mayor Jim Watson. Here in Kitchissippi ward, the turnout was the best in the city, with 48.3%. That's still awful.

Mayor Watson cited a few issues the next day, things that he thinks folks are concerned about, like garbage and transit. What I am hoping is that new councillor Jeff Lieper will be able to pass along the message that he was elected because of concerns about developers. Many of us in this ward are sick and tired of developers in our city running the show and transforming our communities without consideration for established neighbourhoods. Go Jeff!